10 things you didn't know about Mater

1. Between July 2004 and June 2005, Mater appeared in the news more than one thousand times, with a monthly average of around 90 media stories. By those numbers Mater Health Services would be the most widely publicised privately-owned hospital group in Brisbane.
2. Before Mater built the Mater Private Clinic, Brisbane City Council made a claim to compulsorily acquire the land running between Stanley Street and Mater Private Hospital to build a busway. The compromise which evolved from various discussions about this issue saw the awarding of a very rare "volumatic" title. Essentially this title grants Mater control of the airspace between Mater Private Hospital and Mater Private Clinic. We are unaware of any other healthcare provider who can boast a "volumatic" title.
3. The first surgical procedure performed at Mater Children's Private Hospital was a repair of a cleft lip conducted by Dr Michael Lannigan in 1998.
4. Rapid growth. Between 2000 and 2004, Mater Private Hospital's Endoscopy Unit has seen a growth in its annual number of procedures in the order of 49%. The highly efficient Endo Unit conducted 5338 procedures in 2002, 6089 procedures in 2003 and 6863 procedures in 2004. Welcome relief is on its way with the upcoming expansion of the unit in 2006.
5. Mater's South Brisbane campus has a footprint of 127 551 m2. When added to the 9905 m2 at Redland, that makes a total of 137 456m2. All together, Mater owns a footprint of land greater than five times the playing area at the GABBA.
6. While we're on the GABBA. Mater Health Services saw enough patients in the 2004–05 financial year to fill the GABBA (with a capacity of 42 000 seats) nearly nine times. That's 377 064 patients—in one year—not including private outpatient clinics. Given that not every Lions game is packed to the rafters (and why would it be after last season), Mater sees almost an entire football season full of fans.
7. Good odds for a good cause. Mater Foundation regularly attracts in the order of 65 000 participants for each of its Mater Art Union lotteries. The lotteries have been going for 45 years and raised loads of cash for equipment at Mater Hospitals.
8. On May 12 1971, fire broke out in the University section of the Children's Hospital close to the nursery. Sister Angela Mary's account of that dramatic day includes the following note: “The name of Sister Mary Lea who was in charge of the nursery, will always be associated with that event. Risking her own life, Sister returned to the nursery and in the dense smoke, went from cot to cot, putting her hands into each to ensure no child had been left behind, an act of heroism which she regarded as being simply part of her devotion to duty”. Thankfully, all 119 children were evacuated safely and the community rallied to help repair the damaged building. How's that for exceptional people providing exceptional care?
9. The three most borrowed books at Mater Library are: At No.3—Essentials of Neonatal Medicine by Malcolm Levine, David Tudehope and John Thearle. No.2—Fundamentals of Obstetrics and Gynaecology Jeremy Oats and Suzanne Abraham. At No. 1—Practical Paediatrics edited by M. Robinson & D. Robertson (with contributions from John Burke and David Tudehope amongst others). Jeremy Oats was Mater's Director of Obstetrics and Gynaecology; David Tudehope is the Director of Neonatology; John Thearle used to be in the UQ Department of Paediatrics at Mater and John Burke is a nephrologist at Mater.
10. The staff compliment at Mater Health Services has pushed up over 5000 people, 76.66% of whom are female.