Charles Darwin University (CDU) has previewed its newly completed health teaching and training facility, designed by Arch (formerly DWP Australia) and Ashford Lamaya Architects (formerly Ashford Group Architects).
The $30.8 million Centre for Better Health Futures is located at CDU’s Casuarina campus, north of Darwin’s city centre.
A media release from CDU notes that the centre, which is home to the university’s first School of Medicine, “is designed to equip the next generation of health professionals with world-class, practical training.”
Spanning three storeys, the 3,684-square-metre facility includes modern teaching facilities, laboratories and advanced research infrastructure.
Within the new centre, a simulated emergency department and a 12-bed hospital ward are intended to provide students with hands-on clinical experience. The building also houses preclinical and clinical simulation environments equipped with virtual reality and mobile technologies that extend learning opportunities to students at remote CDU campuses in Nhulunbuy, Katherine and Alice Springs.
CDU vice chancellor and president professor Scott Bowman said the centre will play a crucial role in building the Northern Territory’s health workforce.
“This centre represents a significant leap forward in health training for the NT,” he said. “Our students can now experience the closest possible preparation to working in hospitals, remote clinics and emergency settings – ensuring they graduate ready to meet the territory’s unique health challenges.”
CDU pro vice chancellor (Faculty of Health) professor Dominic Upton added, “This new facility provides our staff and students with opportunities that are rarely available outside major metropolitan centres. By bringing education, research and innovation together under one roof, we’re ensuring CDU plays a central role in shaping the future of healthcare in northern Australia.”
Construction on the centre began in 2023, with $15.8 million invested by CDU and $15 million provided by the federal government alongside a grant to establish the medical program.
About this time last year, CDU opened their new $250 million Education and Community Precinct, named Danala, in Darwin CBD. The project was designed by local practice Mode Architects.
The Centre for Better Health Futures will officially open to students in the first quarter of 2026.
Source: Architecture - architectureau
