North Metropolitan Health Service - It is beginning to look a lot like Christmas

17/12/2025

The walls and corridors of our hospitals are looking more like Hollywood blockbuster movies as our teams spread Christmas joy as part of our annual Christmas decorating competition (Deck the Wards).

This is no ordinary competition, teams bring out their most creative minds to create some extra sparkle for patients, visitors and staff this festive season.

NMHS A/Chief Executive Jordan Kelly said Deck the Wards is a highlight of the year both for our staff but also for patients that are in our hospitals and services.

“We want to bring some festive spirit to our services and at the same time we give our staff who have a creative flair a chance to show their talents,” he said.

“Well done to all those involved and thank you for spreading some Christmas cheer.”

A variety of themes were covered this year, from Alice in Wonderland to an Aussie summer Christmas and a Pawfect Christmas.

Judges had the difficult task of selecting winners with such high-quality and creative entries.

Our winners were:

SCGH

First place: Ward C16 for their winter Christmas Alice in Wonderland theme, featuring a guided journey down the rabbit hole where the judges were treated to a Tea Party, meeting with the Cheshire Cat, and choir and dance routine.
Second place: Ward G73, who decked out their ward in full Vegas style, featuring a performance from Elvis Presley, a poker table, and a full Vegas wedding.
Third place: Ward G65 for their Louvre themed Heistmas, where the jewel thief striked.

OPH

First place: Ward 2 for their amazing Australian summer themed Christmas ward, which featured a summer Santa and snowman.
Second place: Ward 7 for their animal themed Christmas display, featuring a fun paw-trait picture station and Christmas pet photos throughout.
Third place: Pharmacy team for their medicine themed Christmas Candyland, which featured a Beta-blocker bridge and Glucose drops hills.

KEMH

First place: Osborne Park Hospital’s Maternity Ward 1 for their amazing Elf Christmas Village window display featuring 19 boxes depicting a different hospital / treatment scene.
Second place: King Edward Memorial Hospital Emergency Centre which has been converted into Santa’s Emergency Workshop. The display includes reindeers pulling a sled filled with presents through the clouds ($150 voucher thanks to P&N Bank).
Third place: Mental Health Service for their Christmas cowboy theme. The judges were treated to a special song and dance routine as they walked through the corridor ($100 voucher thanks to Miss Maud).

Mental Health Services winners

First place - SCGH Mental Health Unit
Second place - PEaT (Professional Education and Training)
Third place - Youth Axis
Honourable mention - Archives Department (Judy), Graylands Hospital
Honourable mention - Murchison Ward, Graylands Hospital

Dental Health Services

First place – Project Office with their ‘Have yourself a very dental Christmas’ theme which blended holiday cheer with the identity of the profession.
Second place – Rockingham Government Dental with their handmade decorations encouraging visitors to ‘Unwrap their smiles’ as they witness the many and varied decorations.
Third place – Wellard Dental Centre for their recycled Christmas theme which encouraged the team to use only recycled materials when creating their Christmas decorations.

Corporate Services

First place - People and Culture with a Grinch themed display.
Second place - Cancer Network who transformed their offices into Santa's workshop.
Third place - HSW Department with their delightful Aussie summer and winter decorations.

A special thanks to our Deck the Wards sponsors: The Good Grocer, P&N Bank, Paywise, Medibank, Café Collective, Santi’s Café and Miss Mauds.

Deck the Wards competition 2025