First national service for Waitemata DHB

First national service for Waitemata DHB

Waitemata District Health Board now has its first national service.

The DHB is now the public provider of hyperbaric oxygen therapy services after taking over management of the Slark Hyperbaric Unit in Devonport from the New Zealand Defence Force.

The handover of the service was made in an official ceremony in Devonport today attended by deputy chief of the Royal New Zealand Navy, Commodore Dean McDougall, representatives of the National Health Board and Eileen Slark, the wife of Tony Slark, the unit’s late founder and pioneer in dive medicine research.

Waitemata DHB chief executive Dr Dale Bramley is delighted the DHB is able to play a key role in the delivery of hyperbaric oxygen therapy services for the rest of the country.

“The move continues the expansion of services and facilities at Waitemata DHB, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to extend our knowledge and skills into hyperbaric medicine.”

The hyperbaric unit will service people with acute conditions including decompression illnesses, air or gas embolisms and carbon monoxide poisoning.

Elective conditions able to be treated in the chamber include crush injuries, cases of trauma with significant blood loss, gas gangrene and thermal burns.

Like with the New Zealand Defence Force, Waitemata DHB will continue to provide 24-hour, sevenday- a-week access to acute hyperbaric medical treatment.

ENDS

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