WARBURTON Sanitarium, The Hydro, Warburton Health Care Centre and Hospital, or Warburton Hospital, – by whatever name it has served, the institution which started life in a converted home in 1910 as the Warburton Sanitarium Home has provided a healing place in the mountains for more than 80 years.
In August 1910, operating out of the converted home of W. D. Salisbury, Warburton Sanitarium Home provided accommodation for five patients and offered ‘good wholesome diet, massage and hydrotherapy’.
It was the start of an evolution of health care, including large-scale expansion and numerous name changes which reflected the changing needs of the community and society as a whole.
Some of many notable developments over the years include the completion of the physiotherapy and hydrotherapy wing in 1959, the Barkley Bell accommodation wing in 1962, the Alcohol and Chemical Dependency Unit in 1986 and the $5 million expansion which was completed in 1994.
Warburton Hospital moved ahead with plans to cater for medical needs beyond the year 2000, and in July 1997 Warburton Health Care Centre changed its name to Warburton Health Resort.
A number of factors, including increasingly high costs of operation, led to the sale in 2000, and closure in 2001 of the complex.
Yarra View Retirement Village
THIRTY years ago, the Adventist community established another caring institution, the Yarra View Retirement Village.
From the original 10 bedroom facility, the village has grown to a 41-bed hostel and 10-bed frail-care facility.
A major refurbishment of the hostel section took place in 1999 to bring it up to its present standard.
Yarra View now provides a high level of care to 50 residents plus one room set aside to provide for a respite resident.
