Bill Hancock, Nina Digiglio and Unions Shoalhaven all made submissions to the inquiry arguing a new hospital would improve health outcomes for Shoalhaven residents.

Shoalhaven City Councillor and registered nurse Nina Digiglio said there is a "health desert" in the southern Shoalhaven - and policy makers need to know.

"If someone had a stroke in Sanctuary Point in summer time, to get to the current hospital site takes too long," she said.

"Then they get sent to Wollongong - it could take two hours for them to be treated. That person is going to end up in a nursing home."

Medication is available that can reduce the harm casued by a stroke, but it must be given to the patient within half an hour of the stroke.

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Cr Digiglio said that was just one example of how residents south of Nowra were not cared for adequately with the current hospital site.

"If your child plays soccor on Saturday and breaks their leg, they'll be shipped off to Wollongong or you have to wait for nuclear medicine to open on Monday," she said.

"Mental health patients are left waiting in emergency for hours.

"It's not right to put this level of pressure on our health care workers. They're doing the best they can. and they're stressed to the max."

Ms Digiglio said research shows the best health outcomes for the most people happen when a hospital is within a 20 minute drive of 80 per cent of the population it serves.

"That is not what we have, and that's a problem," she said.

"When we spend the money for a hospital upgrade we need to get it right and have a hospital that will serve the community for the next 50 years."