The first hospital around Sunshine was established in the 1920's by two nursing sisters at 9 King Edward Avenue, Albion, and was called St Andrews, with 14 beds.

[citation needed] In 1989, the small Sunshine and District Community Hospital at King Edward Avenue was demolished and replaced by the extensive new Sunshine Hospital on Furlong Road in St Albans.

As a consequence of this high volume, the hospital has the worst-performing emergency department of the three operated by Western Health, with the lowest rates of patients seen within the recommended four-hour time.

The introduction of an intensive care unit in 2015 significantly increased the number of emergency presentations at Sunshine.

This number is expected to rise to 7000 by 2026 in line with high growth in the western suburbs of Melbourne.