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Alex Chapman - Respiratory Physician

Private Service, Respiratory

Description

Dr Alex Chapman is an experienced respiratory and general physician with a wealth of experience from the UK and NZ. He has Southern Cross Affiliation but welcomes referrals from all sources.

Alex has wide experience in the field of general respiratory medicine, including difficult asthma, smoking related disorders, respiratory infection, cancer, interstitial and occupational lung disease. He has always retained his general acute medical expertise throughout a busy career within hospital medicine.  

His interest lies in difficult diagnosis and interventional procedures including; thoracic ultrasound, bronchoscopy, endobronchial ultrasound guided techniques and cardiopulmonary exercise testing. He has a cohort of athletes who he sees with sports related respiratory symptoms and is gaining experience in this field.  

He welcomes referrals of unexplained breathlessness or cough.

Alex currently runs his private consultations from Shore Surgery, Milford and at Home Place, off Constellation Drive as a part of the NZRSI (New Zealand Respiratory and Sleep Institute) 

"Of paramount importance is my interest in people. A patient orientated approach has always guided my management decisions."

Alex specialises in:

  • cough
  • asthma
  • COPD and smoking related disorders
  • pulmonary fibrosis
  • lung cancer
  • mesothelioma and occupational lung disease
  • cardiopulmonary exercise physiology
  • sports related respiratory symptoms 

 

 
What is Respiratory Medicine?
Respiratory medicine is the branch of medicine that treats people with diseases affecting the lungs and breathing.
The role of our lungs is to deliver oxygen into our bloodstream and remove carbon dioxide.  When you breathe in, air passes through the throat into the windpipe (trachea). The base of the windpipe divides into the right and left tubes (bronchi) which divide again and again each time getting smaller and smaller until the smallest airways called the alveoli are reached. The alveoli act like balloons i.e. when you breathe in they inflate and when you breathe out they relax.
Oxygen moves across the walls of the alveoli and enters the bloodstream and is carried to the rest of the body after passing through the heart. Carbon dioxide is passed from the blood into the alveoli and is breathed out of the lungs.
 
Common symptoms or signs of lung disease include: shortness of breath, wheezing, long-term cough, coughing up blood, and having chest pains.
 
Respiratory physicians are doctors who specialise in treating conditions of the lungs.

Consultants

Referral Expectations

We advise GP recommended referrals but self referrals are possible if patients are self funding.

If you have any change in your condition before you come to your appointment, please see your GP immediately.

Charges

Southern Cross Affiliate

 

Alex is a Southern Cross Affiliated Provider for consultations under the Respiratory & sleep medicine (Lung function tests & sleep studies) category.

Procedures / Treatments

  • Asthma

    Asthma symptoms include coughing, wheezing, a tight feeling in the chest and trouble breathing.… More

  • Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)

    This term is used to describe lung disease where the breathing tubes become blocked and the surrounding tissue and air sacs inside the lungs become damaged.… More

  • Lung Cancer

    This is when abnormal malignant cells divide and grow in an uncontrolled fashion in the lung tissue.… More

  • Lung Function Tests

    You may be advised to take lung function tests to find out how much air moves in and out as you breathe.… More

  • Spirometers

    Spirometry is a test which measures the speed at which your lungs can be filled and emptied of air.  It can be used to diagnose problems of breathing and monitor the usefulness of treatment.… More

  • Peak Flow Meter

    This is a small hand-held tube that can measure what is happening in your breathing tubes.  You can have one at home and measure your peak flow by blowing into it as hard and fast as possible.  You will be shown how to measure it and compare it with what… More

  • Blood Gas Tests

    This is similar to a blood test but instead of a needle going into a vein it is inserted briefly into a small artery in your wrist.  A small amount of blood is taken and sent to the laboratory for information about the oxygenation of your blood and other gases.… More

  • Chest X-ray

    A chest X-ray is normally undertaken to check the chest wall, lungs and heart.… More

  • Computer Tomography (CT) Scan

    With CT you can see much more detail than with a normal X-ray.… More

  • Fine Needle Aspirate

    Depending on what is seen on the CT scan an additional test can be done where a fine needle is inserted into your chest into the cancer and some cells sucked up into the needle.  This is done while taking pictures with the CT scanner to guide the doctor as… More

  • Bronchoscopy

    During this test a thin fibreoptic tube is inserted into your breathing tubes, through the nose, to view the tubes and take a biopsy (remove cells or tissue) to see if there are cancer cells present.… More

Public Transport

The Auckland Transport Journey Planner will help you to plan your journey.

Parking

Extensive patient parking is provided at 181 Shakespeare Road

Contact Details

Shakespeare Specialist Centre, 181 Shakespeare Road, Milford, Auckland

North Auckland

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Northcare, 5 Home Place, Rosedale, Auckland

North Auckland

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This page was last updated at 1:32PM on August 9, 2021. This information is reviewed and edited by Alex Chapman - Respiratory Physician.