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Story: Rural services

Backblocks nursing service

Video file

This 1948 film about health services in Hokianga, Northland, illustrates the practical difficulties of getting medical help in isolated areas. Nurses and doctors often had to travel long distances on foot or horseback to visit patients. For critically ill people, the trip to hospital could also be an ordeal.

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Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga

Reference: Weekly Review 332. National Film Unit, 1948

Permission of Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga must be obtained before any re-use of this material.

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How to cite this page

Nancy Swarbrick, Rural services – Health, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/video/18570/backblocks-nursing-service (accessed 24 June 2026).

Story by Nancy Swarbrick, published 1 March 2009.