Greater Springfield’s long-awaited public hospital has reached a landmark moment, with Mater Hospital Springfield confirming a staged opening schedule and its first staff already on the ground preparing to receive patients.
Read: Springfield Lakes Is About to Get Its First Public Hospital
Medical and non-clinical staff have been moving into the hospital for onboarding, training and service preparation, with the first outpatient appointments commencing on-site on 13 April. Operating theatres and the intensive care unit follow on 20 April, with full maternity services introduced on 27 April.
Among the first clinicians to begin work at the facility was Dr Ben Butcher, Clinical Director of the hospital’s new Emergency Department. Having transferred from Mater Hospital Brisbane, Dr Butcher said he had been involved in recruiting many of the new ED staff and described the team as excellent and enthusiastic. He said the Emergency Department would open with 55 doctors and more than 100 nurses.
Dr Butcher said being among the first team members in a brand-new hospital built in an area of need was a privilege, and that he was honoured to be part of what he considered an essential resource for the Springfield community.
The Emergency Department is scheduled to be one of the last services to open, with a planned date of 25 May. New staff have been recruited from across Australia, as well as from the United Kingdom and New Zealand.
Springfield Central MP Charis Mullen also shared on Facebook a sneak peek of the facility, noting that the John Holland Group and Mater teams were working on finishing touches ahead of the opening.
A Building That Is Already Buzzing
Construction contractor John Holland and the Mater team have just handed over the completed facility, and more than 100 staff have already moved in for onboarding, training and simulations. The corridors that were empty building site just months ago are now alive with medical and non-clinical teams running through scenarios in the actual spaces where they will care for patients.
General Manager Suzanne Hawksley said reaching practical completion was a proud milestone for everyone involved in the project. “Reaching practical completion and seeing our teams come together for training and preparation is an exciting step as we prepare to open our doors to the community in the coming weeks,” she said.
Midwifery unit manager Tess Willis, who oversees the birth suites and Pregnancy Assessment Centre, said the chance to train inside the real building had been transformative for her team. “After months of planning, it’s incredibly exciting to finally be inside the hospital and start simulations in the spaces where we’ll be caring for families,” she said. “Mater Mothers’ Springfield is expected to welcome around 1700 babies each year, and we’re now looking forward to welcoming mothers into the new hospital in less than two weeks.”
What the Hospital Will Deliver
The facility represents a $1 billion investment, comprising $393 million in capital funding, a $638 million operational commitment over the first four years, and a $26 million land contribution from Mater. Once fully operational, the hospital will provide 186 public beds, including a 54-bay Emergency Department, and is forecast to handle 185,000 patient presentations a year.
Read: Mater Hospital Springfield Seeks 500 Nurses Ahead of 2026 Opening
More than 1,000 staff will work across the campus, including more than 50 midwives serving six birth suites, a Pregnancy Assessment Centre and a dedicated maternity inpatient ward. The hospital is also expected to increase employment in Greater Springfield by an estimated eight per cent.
Mater has been part of the Springfield community since 2015, when it opened Mater Private Hospital Springfield as the master-planned city’s first hospital. That original facility grew from an 80-bed private hospital into an integrated campus, and the new public hospital on the adjacent site now completes the vision. The expansion will deliver 186 public beds for the community, meeting its health needs for decades to come.
Published 13-April-2026
