New psychological trauma service opens

24 June 2011

Minister for Mental Health Mary Wooldridge and Minister for Veterans’ Affairs Hugh Delahunty have officially opened the Coral-Balmoral Building, the new home of Austin Health's Psychological Trauma Recovery Service at the Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital.

Ms Wooldridge said the new $15.5 million facility has been purpose-built to provide highly specialised trauma-related mental health services.

The new facility specialises in the treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and incorporates Victoria's Psychological Trauma Recovery Service.

The $15.5 million facility at Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital features:

• 20-bed inpatient service
• hospital-based outpatient services
• day centre programs
• community-based services
• outreach-based services including tele-psychiatry and domiciliary services
• a centre of excellence for teaching, training and research.

"Heidelberg Repatriation Hospital and the Veterans' Psychiatry Service supports veterans and other trauma survivors, such as those affected by the Bali bombing, and patients with anxiety, stress and major mood disorders,” Ms Wooldridge said.

"The veteran inpatient unit will treat older veterans and those who have fought in recent war-zones to assist with post-trauma related illnesses, and will incorporate female-only facilities to address the growing number of women in the armed forces."

The Coral-Balmoral building brings the Veterans' Psychiatry Unit and the services of Post-Trauma Victoria together under one roof in a purpose-built facility, integrating care across inpatients, outpatients and the community setting.

The name of the building commemorates those Australians who fought in the Vietnam War at the Battle of Coral-Balmoral, which began on 12 May 1968 and was the largest military engagement by Australian forces during that war.