The Navy Health Unit (previously known as the Navy Hospital or the Royal New Zealand Navy Hospital (RNZNH)) is the healthcare facility of the

New Zealand Navy The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN; mi, Te Taua Moana o Aotearoa, , Sea Warriors of New Zealand) is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of nine ships. The Navy had its origins in the Naval Defence Act ...

. It is located in Devonport, on

Devonport Naval Base Devonport Naval Base is the home of the Royal New Zealand Navy, located at Devonport, New Zealand on Auckland's North Shore. It is currently the only base of the navy that operates ships, and has been in use as a navy base since 1841. The b ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

. The hospital specialises in surgery and hyperbaric treatment.

History

Founded in 1941 (before, 'sick quarters' facilities had been restricted to two wooden huts), the hospital was constructed (and still remains) on the cliff overlooking the naval base. The hospital expanded in the early 1980s with a new wing, and started hiring civilian staff in the 1990s. As of 2008, the hospital was treating both military and civilian patients, and was operating as an accredited part of the New Zealand health system. It has beds for 25 inpatients.

Facilities

Hyperbaric Unit

The hospital is New Zealand's leader in diving and hyperbaric medical training and expertise, as well as having the only

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

facility to treat diving related emergencies, such as

decompression sickness Decompression sickness (abbreviated DCS; also called divers' disease, the bends, aerobullosis, and caisson disease) is a medical condition caused by dissolved gases emerging from solution as bubbles inside the body tissues during decompressio ...

('the bends'). The ' Slark' Hyperbaric Unit is used for both emergency treatment and non-urgent

Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy Hyperbaric medicine is medical treatment in which an ambient pressure greater than sea level atmospheric pressure is a necessary component. The treatment comprises hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBOT), the medical use of oxygen at an ambient pressure ...

(HBOT) for general medical needs, including use by the public.

References

External links

Navy Hospital
(official website) {{Hospitals in New Zealand Hospital buildings completed in 1941 Buildings and structures in Auckland Hospitals in New Zealand Military hospitals in Oceania Naval medicine Royal New Zealand Navy North Shore, New Zealand Hospitals established in 1941 Military of New Zealand