AN INDIGENOUS health service hopes to slash wait times and add new workers after being given $7.3 million in state government money for a new medical facility in North Bendigo.
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It is part of a $16.4 million spending across the region announced on Friday morning to upgrade hospitals and community health groups.
The Bendigo and District Aboriginal Co-operative wants to construct the multi-purpose building over roughly a year and want it to contain 10 consulting rooms, three allied health rooms, six interview rooms and office space.
Chief executive Raylene Harradine said demand for BDAC's services had almost doubled in recent years.
"If anything, the health promotion activities that we have undertaken over the past eight years have been really important in encouraging our community to be really healthy," she said.
BDAC already runs a range of allied health services but more can be added, Ms Harradine said.
"If we look at the health area it is around having more GPs and access to services like ... Aboriginal health checks," she said.
"The other thing we are looking at is a dental service, because that is one thing that is critical to our community. And we are looking at a community hall to bring people together.
The state government has also announced that Bendigo Community Health Services will get $7.3 million to upgrade its Eaglehawk facility and Heathcote Health will get $2 million to relocate and upgrade the main kitchen, among other improvements.
Bendigo Health will get $1.3 million for better medical technology at its Barnard Street site and Castlemaine Health will get $770,000 to help its merger with that town's community health service.
All the funding has come from the government's Regional Health Infrastructure Fund, member for Bendigo East Jacinta Allan said.
"This is also something that supports our local construction industry. A lot of these funds are going into constructing new facilities," she said.
Ms Allan said BDAC's new facility would support 20 jobs once it was built.
Member for Bendigo West Maree Edwards said the region's new funding would help people access health services right where they lived.
"The services that are provided by regional and rural health services are just so important," she said.
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