Dr Dimitrios Nikolarakos and his team of six specialists work in the second busiest Maxillofacial department in Queensland. As an Oral and Maxillofacial, Head & Neck and Reconstructive Surgeon, he performs some of the most challenging and complicated surgeries.

A new Gold Coast Health initiative is improving the flow of patients in the Emergency Department and General Medicine wards, enabling patients to be assessed sooner, and reducing their time spent in hospital.

Gold Coast hearts will beat a bit stronger this St Valentine’s Day with a new cardiac health service starting today from Robina Hospital. 

The Cardiology Rapid Access Service provides patients with time-critical, comprehensive specialist care without the need for an extended stay in the Emergency Department or, for some patients, hospital admission.

The service supplements the Gold Coast University Hospital’s Cath Lab which cares for patients with more acute, severe heart conditions.

Gold Coast Health Project Manager Jessica Gisler put her own fears aside and donated blood as part of Lifeblood's February drive to support cancer patients in need.

Cancer patients require more than 10,000 blood donations every week, and with diagnoses predicted to increase by 22% by 2031, the need for more blood donors is growing too.

This was Jessica's first time donating as she is petrified of needles, but she was well supported and tackled her fears head-on to help those in need.

Better Cardiac Care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples is a national initiative aimed at closing the gap in life expectancy for First Nations peoples.

Cardiovascular conditions make the greatest contribution to the gap in mortality between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and other Australians.

Through this program we can increase access to services, better manage risk factors, and improve the coordination of care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients.

The LIFESpace areas within the inpatient rehabilitation units at Gold Coast University Hospital and Robina Hospital continue to improve lives.

The therapy space lets patients engage in everyday activities that bring meaning and purpose to their life.   

Many patients lose confidence due to their injury or frailty, so the LIFESpace area engages them in daily tasks such as shopping and gardening. 

He’s known in these corridors as the music man, and with good reason.

Vince Fuda, an Assistant in Nursing in our Mental Health and Specialist Services at Gold Coast University Hospital runs regular music request nights for older patients (over 65s) in the Orchid Unit.

The playlist Vince says can be quite surprising, ranging from Hendrix to Elvis and Tom Jones classics.

What began as playing tunes on Vince’s iPhone has developed into hour-long popular music sessions, with requested songs played via YouTube clips on a tv screen in one of the meeting rooms.

ICU Registered Nurse, Jessica Knight, has recently returned from a six-week volunteer effort in Kenya where she donated an incredible 63kg of stock collected from various departments (headed for the rubbish bin) across Gold Coast University Hospital.

During her visit Jess volunteered in two rural hospitals in Kenya and one tertiary hospital in the capital of Nairobi where the lack of basic supplies was alarming.

“Kenya does an amazing job at providing care with what they have, as they have a serious lack for basic supplies.

Gold Coasters are urged to be on alert for heat-related illness, with the current heatwave expected to last into the weekend.

Almost 180 graduate nurses and midwives began their careers with Gold Coast Health this month, servicing both Gold Coast University Hospital and Robina Hospital.