The AusHFG help deliver faster and more efficient project briefs for capital projects, in addition to cost benefits as a result of providing standardised components. Many managers and users may be planning a health facility and managing the procurement process for the first time. The AusHFG are expressed in plain language and present the concepts underpinning the design of health projects including commonly accepted standards.

The objecties of the AusHFG are to:

• assist in producing healthcare facilities that will support the required service delivery needs, models of care and operational policies required by health service providers and funding agencies;
• establish an acceptable level of space provision for all healthcare facilities that will reflect and support the delivery of acceptable and contemporary standards of clinical, design and procurement practices; and
• inform and guide architects, designers, users and client groups and assist them in meeting the requirements of the relevant Health Department, funder or regulator for the design and planning of healthcare facilities.

The AusHFG are a central resource for all government and non‐government bodies. The principal benefits to be gained from the use of the AusHFG can be summarised as follows:

• streamlining of project briefing and design processes at management level for Health Departments/Authorities and their Health Capital Asset Managers and Project Directors, by providing a set of endorsed design guidelines for use in all jurisdictions;
• reduction of planning time and costs for health facilities at project level by removing debate around standard Health Planning Units, rooms/spaces and their configurations, and allowing user groups and designers to concentrate their efforts on project‐specific design features;
• increased reliability of estimates of space requirements and project costs at the planning stages of projects as a result of the introduction of a level of standardisation to the design and construction of health facilities;
• fewer variations between projects and within individual projects through the use of commonly accepted standards that make user groups more productive and allow design teams and health managers more certainty in briefing and planning projects in different locations;
• dissemination of current industry knowledge regarding good health facility design and accepted clinical practice in a format accessible to project design teams on all health projects; potentially saving the expenditure of valuable project funds on unnecessary research and user group debates. Ultimately, this should improve the design and delivery of health facilities that support, appropriate standards of clinical practice.

The Australasian Health Facility Guidelines (AusHFG) are an initiative of the Australasian Health Infrastructure Alliance (AHIA), formerly the Health Capital Asset Managers’ Consortium (HCAMC) of Australia and New Zealand which was formed in 2004. The AHIA includes representatives from all jurisdictions in Australia and New Zealand. A list of members with links is provided under AHIA quicklinks on the links page.

One of the purposes of AHIA is to support organisations to better plan, procure and manage their health capital assets. It works across Australia and New Zealand bringing together information, research, knowledge and practical experience about developing and managing health assets and infrastructure.

AHIA provides a link between strategic thinking and realistic application. It is research‐based, solution‐oriented and practical in its approach. The Alliance meets regularly to discuss health investment, procurement and asset sustainability issues in common around Australasia.

The AHIA originally commissioned the development of the AusFH as nationally consistent health design guidelines for the design and construction of health facilities.