No extra funding for Queensland Health to rename satellite hospitals

The seven satellite hospitals established by Labor will be renamed to satellite health centres by the Crisafulli government.

However, Health Minister Tim Nicholls insisted the rebrand would not cost taxpayers more, as the expense would be borne by Queensland Health without any additional funding.

After criticism that the satellite hospitals did not contain all the services of actual hospitals, and people might be misled in an emergency, the LNP went to the election promising to rename them.

Nicholls told 4BC on Thursday it was prudent to rename the “so-called satellite hospitals” and the government had found unanimous support among stakeholders for the alternative.

“It’s a commonsense landing, it calls them what they are,” Nicholls said of the satellite health centres.

Nicholls suggested it would cost up to $30,000 for each site to rename the facilities, amounting to more than $2 million he said would be absorbed by the health budget.

He did not give a time frame, but said if the change prevented even one person making a life-threatening mix-up it would be “time and effort and money well-spent”.

Opposition health spokesman Mark Bailey noted the rebrand came amid a government review of major projects, including new hospitals and upgrades, and with the LNP still promising to deliver better and faster care.

“The Crisafulli LNP government is more obsessed with changing signs than expanding services,” Bailey said, again warning of LNP cuts.