Emergency departments

The Townsville University Hospital emergency department (ED) is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The Townsville HHS also operates emergency services in six other locations, listed below, all of which are also open 24 hours every day.

Townsville University Hospital
Ayr Health Service
Charters Towers Health Service
Ingham Health Service
Hughenden Health Service
Richmond Health Service
Joyce Palmer Health Service (Palm Island)

There is no need to call first.

Arriving at our emergency departments

When you arrive at the emergency department (ED) please go straight to the reception. Here, you will be triaged (categorised) by a qualified nurse. It is important to let the triage nurse know any of the following information:

• previous health problems
• current medications
• if you are pregnant or breastfeeding
• recent overseas travel
• housing or social concerns
• if your pain or symptoms become worse

If you have a complex medical background or a large number of medications, it is always a good idea to bring this information with you to the emergency department.

Hospitals don’t use the traditional ‘first-come first-served’ approach when it comes to treating patients.

Hospitals triage, or sort, patients based on how urgently they need to be seen.

This means patients with immediate or life-threatening illness or injury will be seen before patients with less-serious problems.

A nurse will assess your symptoms and assign a level or category based on those symptoms.

In our ED, many of our most serious patients in need of urgent care arrive by ambulance or helicopter. They will enter the hospital through a different entrance to the public waiting room.

Though you may not see more people in the waiting room, our staff may be responding to a major incident. For this reason, it can be difficult for our staff to give you an exact waiting time.

If you feel that your condition is getting worse or has changed during your wait in the emergency department, you should speak to the nurse at the triage desk again so they can re-assess your health care requirements.

Our staff are continuously working hard to see all patients as quickly as possible.

Townsville University Hospital Emergency Department (ED)

Townsville University Hospital runs one of Australia’s largest and busiest emergency departments, which is consistently ranked among the top-performing departments among major tertiary hospitals in Australia. We take pride in the care our multidisciplinary team provides, led by our emergency physicians, all of whom are Fellows of the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine.

The ED has treatment and diagnostic spaces for:

• Triage
• Emergency resuscitation
• Paediatrics (children)
• Acute medical and surgical problems
• Minor injuries
• A short-stay unit where patients can be admitted under the care of our emergency physicians for 24-48 hours
• Medical imaging including in-house x-ray and CT scanning facility
• Patient referral to specialty units within the hospital.

In the last financial year, Townsville University Hospital’s main ED saw more than 82,000 patients. Across all seven facilities offering acute care, there were more than 100,000 patients presenting.

Do you need an interpreter?

We have a free interpreter service available at all emergency departments. We always use accredited, professional interpreters for all medical appointments as family or friends are may not able to accurately translate complex medical information, or may feel uncomfortable discussing a patient’s personal or medical situation.

If you would like an interpreter please let us know as soon as you arrive.

We also have Multicultural Resources available.

In an emergency you should always call 000.

For non-urgent health advice call 13 HEALTH (13 43 25 84)