A new cancer centre and health worker training school would be built in regional Victoria under another health-related election pledge by the state opposition.
The Victorian Liberals and Nationals on Tuesday vowed to spend $100 million on developing the Integrated Cancer Centre and Clinical Health School at Shepparton if the coalition wins the November 26 state election.
It intends to stump up all the cash for the facility by shelving construction of the first part of the Victorian Labor government's multibillion-dollar Suburban Rail Loop (SRL) from Cheltenham to Box Hill.
"It's not promises in the never-never. It's money that's there now," Opposition Leader Matthew Guy told reporters in Shepparton, despite only $2.3 billion being budgeted for the SRL and promising to honour those contracts.
The funding injection would allow Goulburn Valley Health to expand its cancer and oncology services and make the existing site up to four times larger, improving access for cancer patients across the central Victorian region.
More than 300 nursing and allied health enrolments would go through the school each year under a proposed deal with La Trobe University, expanding on the opposition's past pledges to build new teaching hospitals in Mildura, Wodonga and Warragul.
The Victorian coalition is pushing to reclaim the seat of Shepparton from sitting independent Suzanna Sheed, with both the Nationals and Liberals running candidates.
"The cancer centre is going to be something that ... hundreds of people from this area can come and receive the treatment, instead of travelling hundreds of kilometres," Liberal candidate for Shepparton Cheryl Hammer said.
Premier Daniel Andrews said his government has overseen a $229.3 million redevelopment of Shepparton hospital, which is scheduled to be completed this year.
"We're very proud not to have (just) talked about upgrading health care in Shepparton, but to have actually delivered it ... as well as upgrading the train line in Shepparton," he told reporters in Melbourne.
"See you have to do both."
After a tour of the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Wellness and Research Centre on Tuesday, Mr Andrews announced a $105 million boost to buy new equipment and upgrade infrastructure at health services across the state.
The money, from the state government's $12 billion pandemic repair plan, will be used to buy medical tools such as CT scanners and MRI machines, and upgrade older generators or air-conditioning systems.
A 10-year-old MRI machine at the Austin Hospital's ONJ centre is among equipment to be replaced as it approaches the end of its life span.
Austin Hospital chief executive Adam Horsburgh said the next priorities on the hospital's "wish list" are new theatre microscopes and perfusion machines used for cardiac surgeries.
He said that with COVID-19 hospitalisations and staff furloughs falling, health service pressure was easing nearing winter's end.
"We're in a pretty good place," Mr Horsburgh said.
"Our staff are tired though - it'll be good to be able to give them a break and give them an opportunity to take some leave."
