Anaesthesia

The Paediatric Anaesthetic department is located on Level Two of Starship and provides an internationally recognised, modern anaesthesia service.

The department serves the needs of Starship paediatric patients and the specialists treating them, both inside and outside the operating room. As such the department provides an anaesthetic and peri-operative medical service for children and young people throughout New Zealand and the South Pacific. It also oversees an increasing number of children receiving same day surgery at the Greenlane Surgical Unit at a site remote from the Children's Hospital.

Outside the operating room, the department provides anaesthetic services for radiological procedures of children undergoing CT and MRI scanning, cardiac investigations, other radiological procedures and radiotherapy.

The Pain Service:

The Anaesthetic department provides an acute pain service for pain relief for post-operative, trauma and haematology/oncology patients in the hospital.

There is also input into the chronic pain service. There is increasing awareness that some children, like their adult counterparts, can suffer from chronic pain syndromes. This service is run in conjunction with the Consult Liaison Team.