• severe osteoarthritis of the hip or knee
• fractured bones
• torn or inflamed muscles, tendons and cartilage
• dislocations of joints
• infections in bones and joints
• trapped nerves
• disorders of the spine.

Where joints have become destroyed by disease, or worn out, orthopaedic surgeons can often replace these joints with artificial ones. This results in marked relief from pain and an increase in mobility and enjoyment of life for patients.

Fractures, except for the most minor ones, are treated by orthopaedic surgeons as they have the expertise to assess the damage around the fracture and ensure the best function is obtained after the fracture is mended.

Most spinal conditions do not need a surgical operation, but a small number do. Your GP will tell you if your condition is one that could benefit from an orthopaedic opinion.

Outpatient Clinics

These are held at the Greenlane Clinical Centre.  For information about this location please click here.

You must be assessed by your GP before you can be referred to the Orthopaedic Department at the Auckland Hospital (Greenlane site). As there is only a certain amount of money and a limited number of specialists working at the hospital, it is not possible for the Orthopaedic Department to see every patient who is referred.

There are currently more requests for appointments than we have the capacity to see. This means we must see the most urgent and the most disabled patients. Patients with lesser levels of disability will need to see a doctor outside the public hospital system.

Many minor orthopaedic conditions are treated well by GPs and they may judge that you will receive swifter and more effective treatment by referring you to a sports medicine doctor, a rheumatologist, or a physiotherapist. For many minor orthopaedic conditions these are exactly the same health professionals that the orthopaedic surgeon uses to assist in your recovery.

However there are some conditions that only an orthopaedic surgeon can treat and if your GP refers you to the Orthopaedic Department, you may be given an appointment to see a specialist surgeon. In this case the hospital will write to you giving you an appointment time and date. These appointments are scarce and there is competition for them so there may be some delay before you receive one.  If you do receive one, please turn up on the day because, if you do not turn up, you will deprive another patient of this valuable appointment.

When you come please bring with you:

If you have an urgent orthopaedic condition such as a bone infection or a malignant bone tumour, your doctor will phone the hospital and you will receive an appointment very promptly.

If you have a condition that was caused by an accident, you will receive swifter attention and treatment by seeing an orthopaedic surgeon outside the hospital under the cover of the Accident Compensation Corporation.     

There are no charges for New Zealand citizens or those with permanent New Zealand residency when they are treated in the public hospital. All non-residents and visitors to New Zealand will be billed for the full cost of the consultations and treatment.

The only exception to this is for the treatment of accidents where the cost of treatment can be paid for by the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC).