The Pilbara town of Karratha – an Aboriginal word meaning ‘good country’ - was established in 1968 to service the Hamersley Iron Ore operations and the Dampier Salt project.

Development of the North West Shelf gas fields and onshore LNG processing and export facilities exploded the town into the busy administrative centre of the West Pilbara it is today.

Located 1 557 kilometres north of Perth it boasts spectacular scenes of nature including Millstream and Karijini National Parks, the Dampier Archipelago and the Aboriginal rock art along the Burrup Peninsula. The weather is warm and pleasant all year around encouraging an outdoor lifestyle, which is complemented by beautiful beaches and stunning natural surrounds.

The town has developed into the largest and most economically diverse community in the Pilbara and is home to an estimated 19 000 people including a substantive number of ‘fly-in-fly-out’ workers. Karratha's town centre has the largest shopping centre, ‘Centro Karratha’ (retail floor space 23 600m²) in the Pilbara.

The regional hub for most government agencies, Karratha is equipped with modern educational and entertainment facilities and operates the busiest airport outside of the metropolitan area.

The RCSWA Karratha Office is centrally located on Balmoral Road, close to the CBD. Students have 24/7 access to the office facilities, which include computers, a photocopier, a printer, a library and skills equipment.

Accommodation

The student residence in Karratha is a four-bedroom house just five minutes’ drive from both the office and the hospital. It has a below-ground swimming pool.

Public transport in Karratha is limited and students are advised to take a vehicle with them when selecting this location.

Health services

Karratha is serviced by the Nickol Bay Hospital and the Karratha Medical Centre, although students will also travel to Onslow Hospital and the Mawarnkarra Aboriginal Medical Centre at Roebourne.

Nickol Bay Hospital has one large ward that caters for paediatric, general medical, surgical and maternity patients. There is also a busy Accident and Emergency department. Outpatient clinics are run by visiting specialists.

Karratha Medical Centre is a large general practice and provides the clinical teaching experience for the RCS students.

Visiting specialists

Specialists visit Nickol Bay Hospital either on a regular basis or biannually, depending on their field of expertise.

• Cardiologists (paediatric and adult)
• Dermatologist
• ENT surgeon
• Gynaecologist
• Ophthalmologist
• Orthopaedic specialist
• Paediatrician
• Plastic surgeon
• Psychologist
• Renal specialist
• Rheumatologist
• Urologist.

Community services

• Mawarnkarra Aboriginal Health Service
• Community Health Centre (Population Health)
• • Community health nurses
  • Occupational therapist
  • Speech therapist
• Pilbara Health Network.
• • Allied Health Team – diabetes educator, dietician, podiatrist.

Private diagnostic facilities

• Gemini Medical Centre
• Karratha Medical Centre
• Prime Health.