There’s nothing more stressful than having a sick child, especially at night or on the weekend – and the Andrews Labor Government is giving Victorian families more free alternatives to visiting a busy emergency department.

Premier Daniel Andrews and Minister for Health Mary-Anne Thomas today announced that two after-hours Children’s Priority Primary Care Centres are now open at Monash Children’s Hospital and the Royal Children’s Hospital.

Operating at night and on the weekend, Monash Children’s PPCC has already seen more than 450 patients since opening – ensuring sick kids are getting the appropriate care they need, as soon as they need it.

The Monash Children’s PPCC accepts bookings by phone and online, while the Royal Children’s Hospital aims to reduce hospital pressure and is dedicated only to referrals from their emergency department.

While both centres have been designed specifically with kids in mind, all PPCCs are well equipped to treat children and families are encouraged to attend their closest PPCC to get the quickest possible care.

With 24 PPCCs now open including one at Mildura, which opened last week, close to 55,000 Victorians have now received care at a PPCC since they started progressively opening late last year.

Backed by a $70 million investment by the Labor Government, the centres are diverting thousands of Victorians from our emergency departments and saving critical hospital resources for the sickest patients.

Caring for around 4,000 Victorians each and every week, of which half would have otherwise attended their closest emergency department – PPCCs are free to all Victorians, with or without a Medicare card – with most clinics accepting both walk-ins and pre-booked appointments.

Staffed with both GPs and nurses, PPCCs can treat a range of common ailments that require urgent attention but not a hospital-led response, such as such as minor infections, cuts and burns – saving families time waiting in an emergency department and from waiting, as well as paying, to see a GP.

A further two PPCCs will open next month in Bendigo and Sunbury, which are being delivered alongside other measures to ease health system pressures including the expanded Victorian Virtual ED and Better at Home programs, Ambulance Victoria’s Secondary Triage Service and GP respiratory clinics.

Quotes attributable to Premier Daniel Andrews

“There’s nothing more stressful for a parent than having a sick child, and the only place to go is a busy hospital emergency department – because Medicare is fundamentally broken.”

“That’s why we’ve set up Priority Primary Care Centres right across Victoria including two specifically designed for our kids giving families a local, free and easier alternative to visiting a busy emergency department.”