RUMOUR CONFIRMED

Dozens of public health system surgeries are being shifted to a private hospital due to flooding damage.

The Alfred hospital cardio-thoracic surgical program has temporarily relocated to Cabrini Malvern.

High-acuity surgeries including transplant, ECMO and trauma will continue to take place at The Alfred.

The arrangement will be in place for the next few months to provide bed and operating theatre capacity, following severe rain that flooded two wards and an operating theatre late last year.

Patients remain public patients of The Alfred, with their surgery performed by Alfred surgeons and anaesthetists.

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“We will continue to provide the highest level of care to our cardio-thoracic patients, working with our colleagues at Cabrini Health,” the hospital said in a statement.

“We are currently repairing the roof of the main ward block. This project, funded by the Victorian state government, was already underway when the flooding occurred.”