DOCTOR Ian McPhee, the former Tweed Medical Staff Council head and the man who began campaigning for a new hospital as far back as seven years ago, has given rare insight into the sort of emotion and investment those pushing for the project have given.

"We'll see a brand new facility,” he told a room packed with government ministers and staff as well as media at this week's announcement. "That matches what so many of us have had in our hearts, and yeah... (our) dreams, because it is really something that we've only dreamt of as being a possibility.”

Dr Rob Davies, Tweed Medical Staff Council Co-chair, singled out his former colleague when addressing the audience, saying without him the facility would never have been given the green light.

"I (want to) acknowledge Dr Ian McPhee, who's in the room and has been an enormous driving force behind this,” he said.

"He started this back in 2010 in the building of the clinical services plan and was tireless and relentless in chasing government to try and deliver funding, and without Ian I'm sure this would not (have) happened.”

Tweed MP Geoff Provest said current medical staff council chairs Dr Davies and Dr Mike Lindley-Jones, as well as the former head in Dr McPhee, had led the campaign on behalf of staff and the community.

"I was getting a little emotional when (Dr McPhee) spoke,” Mr Provest said. "Very much so. He has cancer and was an anaesthetist. He was very talented and, in the earlier parts, going back a number of years, he always campaigned very passionately and very aggressively. But looking back at it all he always had the care of the patients as number one all the time. So I did get emotional but I was glad he was there.”

Health Minister Brad Hazzard said he wasn't sure "whether the people of the Tweed know how lucky they are” to have the medical staff of Tweed and Murwillumbah and that his government and the community owe them a debt of gratitude.