If you have an urgent problem requiring immediate surgical assessment you are referred acutely to the Emergency Department where you will initially be seen by our registrar (a trainee specialist) or senior house officer who will decide whether you need to be admitted to hospital. Investigations will be performed as required and the more senior members of the team involved where necessary.

If the matter is not urgent your GP will write an electronic referral letter to the ORL Department requesting an appointment in the outpatient clinic. One of the consultant surgeons working in the Department reviews the referral letters to determine who should be seen first, based on the information provided by the GP. Very urgent cancer cases are seen within two weeks, but other routine cases may have to wait up to four months. Routine cases may be returned to the GP with some management advice.  

We have limited resources in our public health system and are unable to see and treat all ORL conditions. Some patients may not be seen in our outpatient clinic. Currently we have limited capacity to see and treat patients with mild symptoms and the following conditions:

• Adult snoring
• Mild exostoses (surfer's ear)
• Wax removal
• Non cancerous skin lesions
• Prominent ear correction
• Repair of adult ear drums
• Crooked nose/adult blocked nose

We currently have outpatient clinics in Whangarei and Kaitaia hospitals and are working towards a clinic in Kawakawa.

When you come to the ORL Outpatient Department you will be asked questions about your illness and examined to determine or confirm the diagnosis. This process may also require a number of tests (e.g. blood tests, x-rays, scans etc). Sometimes this can all be done during one clinic visit, but for some conditions this will take several follow-up appointments. Occasionally some tests are arranged before you are seen at the hospital to try to speed up the process.

Once a diagnosis has been made, the medical staff will discuss treatment with you. In some instances this will mean surgery and you will go on the elective surgery list, which is ordered according to the urgency and severity of the condition. Other cases can be managed with medication and advice.

In order to minimise the amount of time of that you have to spend in hospital, many surgical departments run a preadmission process. This is usually done through a clinic where you are seen prior to hospital admission. 

Mobile Ear Clinic

To access the Mobile Vision and Hearing Clinic call: 0800 MY EARS (0800 693 277).