Service is opening its doors

As A much-needed upgrade at Beechworth Health Service is completed, planning for the next big project starts. Twelve shared bathrooms have been converted into 24 single bathrooms with $400,000 in Victorian government funding on time and on budget. A further $600,000 was announced by Northern Victoria MLC Jaclyn Symes for the services community street project last month. Chief executive Mark Ashcroft said a corridor joining the acute and residential aged care units would be upgraded and parts opened up to the local community. Its an extension to our bathroom project, because it increases the look and feel and usability of the facility, he said. We will develop conceptually cafes, post offices, meeting spaces, and those sort of things, to create a really flow-through feeling from the roundabout out the front, right through to the redeveloped garden area out the back. It enhances the ability of aged care residents to be active members of the community and it will encourage the community to be active members of our facility. Theres a fair bit of planning that needs to go into this before were shovel-ready; were anticipating sometime in the next 12 months well start.