Royal Darwin Hospital
This article needs to be updated.(January 2022) |
Royal Darwin Hospital | |||||||||||
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Geography | |||||||||||
Location | Tiwi, Northern Territory, Australia | ||||||||||
Coordinates | 12°21′21″S 130°52′55″E / 12.35583°S 130.88194°E | ||||||||||
Organisation | |||||||||||
Care system | Public Medicare (AU) | ||||||||||
Type | Teaching | ||||||||||
Affiliated university | Flinders University, Charles Darwin University & University of Sydney | ||||||||||
Services | |||||||||||
Emergency department | Yes | ||||||||||
Beds | 360 | ||||||||||
Helipads | |||||||||||
Helipad | (ICAO: YXDH) | ||||||||||
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History | |||||||||||
Opened | 1980 as Casuarina Hospital | ||||||||||
Links | |||||||||||
Website | Official Website | ||||||||||
Lists | Hospitals in Australia |
The Royal Darwin Hospital (RDH) is a 360-bed Australian teaching hospital located in
It is the main teaching hospital for
History
The first hospital of the settlement of
Construction on the site, then known as Casuarina Hospital began in 1973.[5] In the interest of reducing time and costs, a design by architects Stephenson and Son of Melbourne was chosen, based on the new Woden Valley Hospital in Canberra with modifications to suit the tropical climate. Initial planning expected the hospital to be operational by January 1977, with capacity for up to 425 beds, followed by a potential second stage adding 220 beds and a rehabilitation centre in 1980.[6] The Commonwealth Department of Works initially costed the main hospital building at $16 million, however Cyclone Tracy in 1974 flooded the site, leading to delays and cost blow-outs.[7]
By April 1978, the first buildings were complete, with the hospital laundry opening in April and occupation of staff residences began following shortly after. Casuarina Hospital became fully operational on 20 May 1980, with the official opening by Prime Minister
During 2003, The Royal Darwin Hospital underwent a $43 million major redevelopment that included construction of a new Emergency Department and an expanded Intensive Care Unit. A coronary care unit, an additional Operating Theatre suite, a new Imaging Department and a 12-bed Hospice were also added.[8]
The Royal Darwin Hospital is also home of the National Critical Care and Trauma Response Centre funded by the Australian Government after the hospital's efforts associated with the 2002 Bali bombings.
Services
Royal Darwin Hospital is the largest hospital in the Northern Territory, and employs over 1500 people.[9] Some of the services at the hospital are Anaesthetics, Cardiology, Emergency, Intensive Care and Surgery, Medicine, Pathology and Radiology and many other services.
Royal Darwin also fosters relationships with Darwin's other hospitals, including the Darwin Private Hospital.
Statistics
In the 2019–20 reporting period, Royal Darwin Hospital handled 56,732 Emergency Department presentations, of which 74% were treated within clinically recommended timeframes, performing below the national average for comparable hospitals in all triage categories except patients requiring immediate resuscitation. The hospital conducted 3,977 elective surgeries, with broadly similar waiting times to comparable hospitals. During the period, the hospital reported 82,254 admissions in the same period, per data available on the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare's MyHospitals website.[10]
Racial profiling controversy
In 2016, the hospital made international news, attracting criticism when
Although a complaint was lodged, both the hospital and the Territory's Health Minister John Elferink refuted the allegations. Elferink asserted that questions about consumption of alcohol are a normal and necessary part of the diagnostic process for any patient presenting for medical treatment, in line with the hospital's policies.[13] He declined to formally investigate the claims,[14] labelling them a publicity stunt.[11] The Northern Territory branch of the Australian Medical Association also defended the hospital's record on working with Indigenous Australians, pointing out that 60 per cent of patients treated at RDH are Indigenous.[15] Although Gurrumul recovered on that occasion, he died at Royal Darwin Hospital from his disease in July 2017.
See also
References
- ^ "Top End Health Service Service Delivery Agreement 2019-20" (PDF). Northern Territory Government. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
- Department of Health. 15 May 2020. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
- ^ "Menzies history in brief". Menzies School of Health Research. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
- ^ A Brief History
- ^ ISBN 0731511832.
- hdl:10137/11499. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
- ^ Dijana Damjanovic (16 October 2018). "Why are the Darwin and Canberra hospitals identical, complete with 'snow eaves'?". Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
- ^ RDH Redevelopment Archived 2009-04-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ http://www.nursing.nt.gov.au/docs/hospitals/rdh.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ "Royal Darwin Hospital". MyHospitals. Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
- ^ a b Helen Davidson (15 April 2016). "Gurrumul hospital row highlights Indigenous health obstacles". Guardian Australia.
- ^ Anastasia Tsioulcas (26 July 2017). "Iconic Australian Musician Dr. G. Yunupingu Has Died, Age 46". WBUR-FM.
- ^ ABC Radio Darwin (5 April 2016). "Gurrumul Yunupingu: Formal investigation into singer's treatment at Darwin hospital ruled out". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
- The Courier Mail. 5 April 2016.
- ^ Peter Theodosiou (26 July 2017). "Darwin hospital accused of racial profiling in Gurrumul Yunupingu treatment". SBS News.