Royal Darwin Hospital

Royal Darwin Hospital is a 345-bed teaching hospital located in the northern suburbs of Darwin, Northern Territory.HistoryThe first hospital of the settlement of Palmerston (later Darwin) was built in 1874. The hospital was built on Packard Street overlooking Doctors Gully under the authority of Dr James Millner. By 1878, the hospital was improved with stone. During the next 40 years, the hospital was administered by South Australia. In 1911, the Commonwealth Government assumed control. Construction of an 89-bed hospital fronting Lambell Terrace commenced in 1941 to cater for the Darwin area population of 4,000. The new hospital opened 2 February 1942 and was bombed just 17 days later during the Bombing of Darwin.Prior to Cyclone Tracy in 1974, approval had been given for the construction, based on the Woden Hospital design, of Casuarina Hospital on Rocklands Drive in the northern suburb of Tiwi. Casuarina Hospital became fully operational on 20 May 1980. On 1 January 1982, the Casuarina Hospital name was changed to Darwin Hospital. Following the Royal Assent on 10 January 1984, the hospital became Royal Darwin Hospital.