Our History
The Navy Hospital (the 'Sick Quarters') began as two wooden huts overlooking the playing fields in the Naval Base in the 1930s.
In 1941 the 'new hospital', named the Royal New Zealand Navy Hospital (RNZNH), was built on the cliff above the Naval Base, where we are still located. At that stage the Hospital staff consisted of a Surgeon Commander, a Surgeon Lieutenant Commander, two Nursing Sisters, and male Sick-Berth Attendants.
Image on right: The 'Sick Quarters' in 1946
The old medical ward, PHILOMEL, pre 1946
By 1942 there were female sick-berth attendant Ratings who were part of the WRNZNS. In 1967 the Sick-Berth Branch was renamed the Medical Branch and its Ratings were renamed Medical Assistants. They are now known as Navy Medics.
LT CDR Matron Christine McDonald and PO Noelene Gunn in 1953
Army Nursing Corps Registered Nurses were posted to the hospital until 1993.
In 1993 the hospital began employing more civilian doctors, nurses and support staff, and this staff mix remains the same today.
Matron Grant presented this tapestry of RNZN vessels in an Auckland seascape to Navy Hospital in 1979
Upgraded
A new wing was added to the hospital in the early 1980s. The operating theatre and wards have been upgraded over the years to meet Ministry of Health licensing requirements. The 2007 upgrade incorporated the addition of another new wing in which to house the fleet dental unit. This renovation also resulted in a new central entrance way that provides access from the Base and also from Calliope Road directly to either the hospital or the dental unit. It also included a new staff lunch room where hospital and dental staff can mingle and network. Because these buildings serve as part of the naval base perimeter, border security at the hospital and dental facilities is strictly regulated.
Ministry of Health Licensing and Certification
The Navy Hospital was first licensed with the Ministry of Health in 1994. Certification replaced licensing, and the hospital achieved certification (measured against the Health and Disability Sector Standards) with the Ministry of Health in March 2004.
Accreditation
In 2002, the hospital achieved accreditation for a three-year term with Quality Health New Zealand, and the first re-accreditation survey was held in September 2005. Since then Navy Hospital has been surveyed three times and has continued to meet the standard.
Business Unit
In 1998, the Hospital became a business unit within the Navy, with a commercial charter and a civilian General Manager. The Hospital accepts fee-paying civilian patients (over the age of 15 years), mainly for surgery and hyperbaric services, and has contracts with ACC for clinical, surgical and hyperbaric services.
Navy Hospital from Calliope Road in 2005