Gosford Private Hospital Maternity Services Closing in 2025
Dr Kelly Hankins will Continue to Operate in the Public Maternity Sector
As of March 2025, Gosford Private Maternity Services will be closing. The difficult decision was made due to a decline in private hospital birth rates, less need for private maternity on the Central Coast, an increase in cost of living, and private health insurance funding difficulties. Unfortunately, all the staff at Intuition Private were only made aware of this decision on Monday, 21st October.
This decision will impact current private maternity patients due after 31st March 2025. Services will continue until March 31st, 2025, however, all obstetric procedures scheduled after this date will be moved to Gosford Hospital with the NSW health system.
Dr Kelly Hankins currently holds admitting privileges to be able to look after private maternity patients at Gosford Public Hospital. She is happy to complete her patients’ birthing journey and continue looking after them at the public hospital should they choose to do so. However, she is also searching for a new private placement.
One of Dr Kelly’s patients messaged her about this decision, stating, “I’m absolutely devastated to hear this news. Such a backwards step for women’s health care on the Coast … I don’t know what this means for the future, and also can’t imagine the additional strain this will put on the public system … I feel so extremely sad hearing this news.”
With the news only being posted this week, patients are already starting to worry about where their healthcare lies. Patients in the private health system expect personalised care, but with these changes causing private patients to be moved to Gosford Public, patients may begin to feel unsure about the quality of their care and that of others. The public health system as a whole will also be affected, causing added stress to public health workers and both public and private patients.
Dr Hankins wants to emphasise her dedication to patient care and education. She understands how confusing and difficult this change will be for her patients, but she will continue to support her patients as much as she can going forward. Any future updates about this decision will be posted online to keep her patients as informed as possible.
Dr Kelly Hankins remains available to address any concerns relating to these changes. She has always been and always will be dedicated to the health and well-being of her patients and will do whatever she can to help ease her patients’ worries.
For any information about how these new changes will affect you in the future, contact Dr Kelly Hankins on (02) 4321 0500.