Flowers for a patient at Sunshine Coast University Hospital
A Sunshine Coast florist makes the bouquet and takes it to the hospital in Birtinya. Check with the ward first, because not every unit allows flowers at the bedside.
Sunshine Coast University Hospital, usually shortened to SCUH, stands at 6 Doherty Street, Birtinya QLD 4575, in the Kawana Waters area between Caloundra and Mooloolaba. It is run by the Sunshine Coast Hospital and Health Service under Queensland Health and opened in March 2017 with 450 beds, the first new teaching hospital in Australia for twenty years. By mid-2025 it had grown to 728 beds and it now serves roughly 450,000 people from Caloundra up to Gympie. When you order flowers for a patient here, a florist on the Sunshine Coast arranges them and delivers to the hospital.
Flowers on the wards at SCUH
The health service does not publish a flower policy, so ask the ward. The switchboard is 07 5202 0000; ask for the nurse in charge of the ward and they will tell you in a minute whether a bouquet is welcome. As a general rule for Australian hospitals, not specific to SCUH, flowers stay out of intensive care, coronary care, the cancer wards in the Adem Crosby Centre and any room where a patient is immunosuppressed. Mental health units often ask for no glass. There is a flower and gift shop on the hospital concourse, which tells you flowers are a normal sight in the general wards.
Maternity and the children's ward
The maternity ward has preferred visiting times of 10am to 12.30pm and 4pm to 8pm, with the support person welcome at any hour. Our florists aim for those windows so the bouquet goes straight to the room. A small posy or a boxed arrangement suits a maternity room better than a tall vase, and it is wise to skip strongly scented flowers near a newborn. On the children's ward parents can visit at any time; a cheerful bunch of gerberas or sunflowers goes down well, but ask the ward about balloons and soft toys first, as rules change.
Writing the delivery details
Give the patient's full name, the ward name and bed number if known, and a phone number for a family member. Hospital stays on the Coast are short, so if the person is likely to go home to Buderim, Caloundra or Maroochydore within a day, send the flowers there instead. Visiting on the general wards is flexible rather than fixed, but the hospital may restrict visitors at times, which is another reason the ward phone call matters.
Not the Sunshine Hospital in Melbourne
People sometimes search for the Sunshine Hospital and land here. That hospital is in St Albans in Melbourne's west and is a different place entirely; this page is about the Sunshine Coast University Hospital in Queensland.
Prices and cut-off on the Sunshine Coast
Bouquets start at about AUD 75 and the delivery fee is shown at checkout. Same-day delivery is available Monday to Saturday for orders placed before 2pm on a weekday or 10am on a Saturday, Queensland time, though to a hospital same day is never promised. Queensland keeps standard time all year, so from October to April the 2pm cut-off is 3pm in Sydney and Melbourne.
Did you know? Sunshine Coast University Hospital opened in March 2017 with 450 beds and had grown to 728 beds by June 2025.
Frequently asked questions about flowers to Sunshine Coast University Hospital
Can I send flowers to Sunshine Coast University Hospital?
Yes, to most general wards and to maternity. The hospital leaves the decision to each ward, so ring 07 5202 0000, ask for the nurse in charge and confirm. Intensive care, coronary care and the cancer wards generally do not take flowers, which is the usual rule in Australian hospitals rather than an SCUH-specific one.
When should flowers arrive on the maternity ward at SCUH?
The ward prefers visitors between 10am and 12.30pm and 4pm and 8pm. Our florists deliver in daytime hours and hand the bouquet to the ward, so order in the morning if you want it there the same day. A small, lightly scented arrangement is best around a newborn.
What address do I use for a patient at SCUH?
Sunshine Coast University Hospital, 6 Doherty Street, Birtinya QLD 4575, then the patient's full name and ward. Birtinya is the suburb, not Wurtulla or Kawana, although locals use all three. Add a mobile number for a relative in case the patient has already been discharged.