South Australia’s health system is set to gain a major operational boost with a new purpose-built State Health Coordination Centre preparing to open in mid-January, delivering round-the-clock oversight designed to improve patient movement, hospital flow and system-wide responsiveness.
The new hi-tech centre will operate 24/7 and will be co-located at the new headquarters of the SA Ambulance Service on Richmond Road at Mile End South. Bringing together experienced clinical staff and paramedics under one roof, the centre is designed to support faster decision-making and more coordinated responses across the health system.
Powered by advanced predictive data and analytics, the State Health Coordination Centre will provide near real-time visibility of patient flow across ambulances, emergency departments, inpatient wards, inter-hospital transfers, regional patient repatriations and complex discharges. By combining system-wide data with on-the-ground clinical expertise, teams will be able to identify emerging pressure points, patterns and bottlenecks earlier, allowing resources to be directed where they are needed most.
The centre is not entirely new to South Australia’s health network. It first opened in 2023 alongside the SA Virtual Care Service in Tonsley, but the move to a dedicated, purpose-built facility marks a significant expansion in capability and scale. Working closely with SA Ambulance Service and Local Health Networks across the state, the centre’s dashboards already attract an average of 1,500 views each day and have supported almost 50,000 patients through the statewide interfacility transfer process.
The relocation comes at a time of sustained pressure on hospitals, driven in part by an unseasonal surge in flu cases. In 2025, South Australia recorded more than 36,000 influenza cases, up sharply from 22,936 the year prior. While flu cases typically peak during winter, recent data shows notifications have remained elevated, largely due to the prevalence of the Influenza A strain.
In the week ending 27 December alone, there were 465 new flu cases recorded in South Australia, with 51 hospitalisations. Across the year, flu accounted for 3,614 hospital admissions. These presentations, alongside broader demand growth, have contributed to increased strain across emergency departments and ambulance services.
Despite the pressures, performance indicators show notable improvement compared to previous years. In December, ambulances reached 71.2 per cent of Priority 1 cases within the eight-minute target timeframe, up from 47.1 per cent in January 2022. For Priority 2 cases, 57.9 per cent were reached within the 16-minute target in November, compared to 36.2 per cent in January 2022.
However, challenges remain. Ambulances spent 3,983 hours ramped outside metropolitan hospitals in December, and there was a six per cent increase in emergency department presentations compared to the same period last year. There are also currently 353 elderly South Australians medically ready for discharge but awaiting access to federally funded aged care beds.
Acting Minister for Health and Wellbeing Blair Boyer said the new centre would play a critical role in addressing these system-wide pressures. “The new State Health Coordination Centre will give us 24/7 access to real-time information to best respond to blockages in the system and direct resources where they are most needed, helping to improve patient flow and reduce the bed-block which contributes to ramping,” he said.
Advanced Nursing Director and State Health Coordination Centre Operations Lead Natalie Hincksman said the centre provides an unprecedented level of visibility across the care journey. “It allows us to have 24/7 eyes on patient flow, from the community response, to our emergency departments, all the way through to subacute facilities and patient discharge,” she said. “This comprehensive data allows hospital staff and the SA Ambulance Service to deploy resources where and when they are needed.”
