A day hospital is a medical facility, not attached to an inpatient hospital. Patients are admitted and discharged on the same day to undergo their surgical, diagnostic or medical procedure. Some day hospitals have an extended license for 23 hours. This provides patients with extended recovery time for more complex procedures. Free standing day hospitals are purpose designed and built to accommodate the specific medical specialties offered to their patients.

Did you know?

• Day hospitals play a major role in health care delivery with 357 private stand-alone facilities throughout Australia providing surgical, diagnostic and medical care.
• A day hospital is a licenced and accredited free-standing facility, physically separated from and not integrated with an overnight hospital, that admits patients for medical and/or surgical treatment which is conducted within a 23 hour period.
• Day hospitals are required to be licensed by the state / territory jurisdiction where they are located and must meet the same accreditation requirements as overnight hospitals.
• The day hospital sector offers cost-effective, high-quality care with expert staff in a specialised setting.
• Approximately 60% of all acute surgical procedures are performed in day hospitals, and within some specialties such as Ophthalmology this is nearly 90%.
• The most common day sector treatments in Australia (2021) were: Renal dialysis, Cataract surgery with lens insertion, Colonoscopy, Chemotherapy, Retinal procedures, Gastroscopy, Dental extractions including wisdom teeth removal 

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