Across the sprawling Baillie Henderson Hospital campus, the pharmacy team keeps a constant rhythm: medications must reach patients quickly and safely.
Until recently, that rhythm relied entirely on walking.
Every day, pharmacists moved across the campus on foot, delivering medications to wards and patients — rain, hail, or shine. It was just part of the job. Long distances, repeated trips, and urgent requests were all part of the day’s reality.
Now, thanks to the generosity of the Darling Downs community, that routine is changing.
The Toowoomba Hospital Foundation has donated a buggy to the pharmacy team, giving them a practical tool to move more efficiently across the campus.
For pharmacist Cecilea Klaasen and her small team, it will change the way they work.
"At the moment, everything is via foot, rain, hail or shine. We walk around the campus seeing patients and delivering medications," she said.
The team services multiple areas across the site: the Bunya Centre, the rehab ward, MU5, and all the Mental Health wards. Usually, it’s just Cecilea and a pharmacy assistant covering the entire campus.
"The campus is quite spread out… so it’s physically stretched out," she explained.
The buggy will help them respond more quickly to urgent requests and speed up discharge processes, meaning patients get what they need sooner and staff can focus on care rather than running back and forth.
"Yes, just more efficient and more comfortable for us, not running around in the rain. Not that it rains that much, but just the convenience of being able to say, 'I’ll be there in a few minutes,' instead of doing a fast-paced walk, trying to do a run."
The benefits extend beyond the pharmacy team. When medications arrive faster, ward staff can stay where they’re needed most — caring for patients.
"This will definitely have a flow-on effect for the wards, because they won’t need to send out one of their staff members to collect things."
For Cecilea, the buggy isn’t just convenient — it’s long overdue.
"The pharmacy has been a service out here for a very long time — 45 years at least — and the layout has always been like this. So, it’s always been a wish list item."
Toowoomba Hospital Foundation CEO Jude Wills said community support makes practical improvements like this possible.
"Sometimes it’s the simple things that make a daily difference in a hospital environment," she said.
"This buggy will help the pharmacy team move around the Baillie campus more efficiently so they can focus on what matters most — ensuring patients receive the medications they need, when they need them."
Ms Klaasen said the impact will be felt across the whole campus.
"In terms of overall effect, I think the Baillie campus as a whole is going to have that little bit of improved efficiency, not just for us. We will have to adjust our calorie intake!"
