GenesisCare Oncology has opened a new cancer centre in northwest Sydney.
The centre is part of The Bond, the first commercial building in a larger master-planned health and medical precinct adjacent to the local hospital.
GenesisCare Norwest Centre Leader, Samantha Redfearn, said it was “wonderful” to be in the new space.
“It’s a beautiful building, all timber and glass with lots of natural light – and this is going to sound weird, but it smells nice as well!” she said.
“The entrance is right off the carpark, so people can come in, find a park easily and walk about 10 steps to get inside.
“Parking has been the number-one issue patients have raised with us across all our sites, so we have solved that one here. And parking is free.”
Patients at the new centre will be cared for by a multidisciplinary team of cancer-specific experts including, radiation oncologists, nurses, radiation therapists, physicists, allied health specialists, and a comprehensive team of support staff.
“All our doctors are associate professors, and they’re all experts in their field, so that’s the dream team as far as we are concerned,” Ms Redfearn said.
“They’re quality staff, and just beautiful people generally.
“We are a one-stop-shop for radiology patients, and we have shared care patients with the hospital, so it’s a seamless transition for them from one department to another.”
Ms Redfearn said bringing cancer treatment services to northwest Sydney, a rapidly-growing area, was important.
“When you have cancer, you don’t want to be travelling for an hour or two to get treatment and then an hour or two home again, so it’s great to be able to have these services in the local community.
“For a lot of people, we’re five minutes from home,” she said.
“There’s a hotel here as well, just across the lake, so we’re working out some deals with them for our regional patients, who can come and stay in a serviced apartment and really make it a home away from home.
“It is harder for regional patients, they might be able to have one person with them, but they can’t have their whole family here with them, so we try and make this process as easy as possible for them.”
Ms Redfearn said the centre was already looking to add new staff as patient numbers had increased faster than expected.
“In the future, we’re looking to expand our allied health offerings, and also in June this year we’ll have Look Good, Feel Better here doing workshops with patients – and you don’t have to be a GenesisCare patient to access those workshops,” she said.
The Bond was designed using state-of-the-art cross-laminated timber (CLT) for the floorplates, walls, and stairs, as well as traditional laminated timber columns and beams for the frame, plus full-height glazing for natural light.
Visible timber in building design has been known to increase feelings of wellbeing and optimism as well as improving concentration for people working within the buildings.
“Our staff are delighted to be in this shiny new space, and we look forward to making sure our patients are really looked after,” Ms Redfearn said.
