The Rural Area Hospital

One Voice.

One Community.

One Vision.

SWAH would be best categorised as a ‘Rural Area Hospital’ that recognises its unique mix of being a medium sized hospital (312 beds) in a remote location delivering full unscheduled and elective care.

The following definition should be added to the ‘Hospitals – Creating A Network For Better Outcomes’ (DoH, 2024) – and proposed as an appropriate category for SWAH:

“Rural Area Hospitals: delivering a range of essential secondary care services, both unscheduled and elective, geared to sustaining full acute and emergency surgical and medical services in isolated and deprived locations.”

Recommendation 20: SWAH is categorised as a ‘Rural Area Hospital’