On Tuesday 20 May, the Queensland Paediatric Cardiac Services (QPCS) transitioned from The Prince Charles Hospital to Mater Children’s Hospital.

Approximately 90 highly skilled paediatric cardiac staff transferred with the service to Mater Children’s Hospital.

The QPCS is now located in a paediatric facility for the first time in Queensland and is expected to perform around 350 procedures each year.

The QPCS is supported by a comprehensive range of paediatric sub-specialties to ensure that the child’s clinical needs can be addressed by a coordinated team of staff and is in an environment where the needs of children and their families are well understood, with central social facilities for staff and families.

The service transition resulted from recommendations made by the Mellis Review in 2006. It was determined by an independent taskforce that children with cardiac conditions should be cared for in a tertiary paediatric hospital, and there should be one tertiary children’s hospital for Queensland.

Mater Children’s Hospital will provide interim facilities for paediatric cardiac services until the opening of the Queensland Children’s Hospital (for more information please see http://www.health.qld.gov.au/childrenshospital/).

The facilities at the QPCS include:

• cardiac specialist clinics and clinical measurements services
• new state-of-the-art catheter laboratory
• expanded Paediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) with an additional nine beds
• dedicated cardiac operating theatre and perfusion areas in theatre complex
• a 19 bed cardiac inpatient ward area
• expanded allied health facilities
• expanded parent facilities
• administration areas for cardiac clinicians.

The transition of the Queensland Paediatric Cardiac Service to Mater is an important milestone towards the integration of tertiary children’s health care services in preparation for the opening of the Queensland Children’s Hospital by 2011.