Royal Naval Medical Service
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The Royal Navy Medical Service (RNMS), also termed the Royal Naval Medical Service is the branch of the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
responsible for providing 'comprehensive healthcare to ships, submarines and Royal Marine personnel at sea and on land'. It includes within its remit of responsibility
Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service (QARNNS) is the nursing branch of the British Royal Navy. The Service unit works alongside the Royal Navy Medical Branch. As of 1 January 2006, according to former Ministry of Defence junior ministe ...
. The Head of the Royal Navy Medical Service, also holds the position of 'Head of Navy Healthcare' in Navy Command Headquarters and the present incumbent is Commodore Alison Hofman.


History

The history of the service can be traced back to 1692 when treatment for sick and wounded naval personnel was administered by the Commissioners of the Sick and Hurt Board (a subsidiary body of the
Navy Board The Navy Board (formerly known as the Council of the Marine or Council of the Marine Causes) was the Regulatory agency, commission responsible for the day-to-day civil administration of the Royal Navy between 1546 and 1832. The board was headqua ...
) until 1806, when medical officers of the
Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the naval warfare force of the United Kingdom. It is a component of His Majesty's Naval Service, and its officers hold their commissions from the King of the United Kingdom, King. Although warships were used by Kingdom ...
had been under the direction of the Transport Board. In 1817 the Transport Board was merged with the Navy Board, and responsibility for medical officers passed to the
Victualling Board The Commissioners for the Victualling of the Navy, often called the Victualling Commissioners or Victualling Board, was the body responsible under the Navy Board for victualling ships of the British Royal Navy. It oversaw the vast operation of ...
. In 1832 the Navy Board and the Victualling Board were both abolished (following recommendations by the
First Lord of the Admiralty First Lord of the Admiralty, or formally the Office of the First Lord of the Admiralty, was the title of the political head of the English and later British Royal Navy. He was the government's senior adviser on all naval affairs, responsible f ...
, Sir James Graham). At the same time, Sir William Burnett (who had served as one of the medical commissioners on the Victualling Board since 1822) was appointed Physician-General of the Navy; as such he had charge of the navy medical department and reported directly to the
Board of Admiralty The Board of Admiralty (1628–1964) was established in 1628 when Charles I put the office of Lord High Admiral into commission. As that position was not always occupied, the purpose was to enable management of the day-to-day operational requi ...
. The title of his post was changed to Inspector-General of Naval Hospitals and Fleets in 1841, and was again changed in 1844 to Director-General of the Medical Department of the Navy. In 1917 following further re-structuring within the Admiralty Department it became known as the Royal Navy Medical Service headed by Medical Director General of the Navy, also known as the Medical Director General (Naval) (which was the official title by the start of the 21st century). The Medical Department of the Navy was initially, like its predecessor the Sick and Hurt Board, based in
Somerset House Somerset House is a large neoclassical architecture, neoclassical building complex situated on the south side of the Strand, London, Strand in central London, overlooking the River Thames, just east of Waterloo Bridge. The Georgian era quadran ...
. In the 1860s, along with the other Civil Departments of the Admiralty, it was removed from Somerset House to Spring Gardens (where the
Admiralty Extension The Admiralty buildings complex lies between Whitehall, Horse Guards Parade and The Mall and includes five inter-connected buildings. Since the Admiralty no longer exists as a department, these buildings are now used by separate government depar ...
now stands); in 1879 the offices of the director-general were located at 9 New Street, Spring Gardens, London. The director-general was at this time under the direction of the
Junior Naval Lord Junior or Juniors may refer to: Aircraft * Ekolot JK-05L Junior, a Polish ultralight aircraft * PZL-112 Junior, a Polish training aircraft * SZD-51 Junior, a Polish-made training and club glider Arts and entertainment Characters * Bowser Jr. ...
. In the early 1960s, with the establishment of the
Ministry of Defence A ministry of defence or defense (see American and British English spelling differences#-ce.2C -se, spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is the part of a government responsible for matters of defence and Mi ...
in place of the Admiralty, the Medical Director General and his staff moved into the
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. In December 1984 he moved, with a reduced staff, into a new combined
Defence Medical Services The Defence Medical Services (DMS) is an umbrella organisation within the Ministry of Defence in the United Kingdom. It describes the Royal Navy Medical Service, Army Medical Services and RAF Medical Services. The Defence Medical Services Group ...
central headquarters building in First Avenue House,
High Holborn High Holborn ( ) is a street in Holborn and Farringdon Without, Central London, which forms a part of the A40 route from London to Fishguard. It starts in the west at the eastern end of St Giles High Street and runs past the Kingsway and ...
, which had been established with a view to bringing together the three medical services under a single administrative head (the
Surgeon General Surgeon general (: surgeons general) is a title used in several Commonwealth countries and most NATO nations to refer either to a senior military medical officer or to a senior uniformed physician commissioned by the government and entrusted with p ...
); (albeit, in spite of expectations to the contrary, the RN Medical Service and its Army/RAF counterparts maintained their autonomy). In 1993 the office of the Medical Director General moved to Victory Building in
HMNB Portsmouth His Majesty's Naval Base, Portsmouth (HMNB Portsmouth) is one of three operating bases in the United Kingdom for the Royal Navy (the others being HMNB Clyde and HMNB Devonport). Portsmouth Naval Base is part of the city of Portsmouth; it is loc ...
as part of the relocation of the
Second Sea Lord The Second Sea Lord and Deputy Chief of the Naval Staff (formerly Second Sea Lord) is deputy to the First Sea Lord and the second highest-ranking officer currently to serve in the Royal Navy and is responsible for personnel and naval shore estab ...
and various directorates from London to Portsmouth.


Current structure

The medical branch today is made up of Medical Officers (
physicians A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the study, diagnosis, prognosis ...
and
surgeons In medicine, a surgeon is a medical doctor who performs surgery. Even though there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon is a licensed physician and received the same medical training as physicians before spec ...
) and
Medical Assistants A medical assistant, also known as a "clinical assistant" or healthcare assistant in the US, is an allied health professional who supports the work of physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and other health professionals, usually ...
(
non-commissioned officers A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a Commission (document), commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority b ...
and ratings, who receive similar training to
paramedic A paramedic is a healthcare professional trained in the medical model, whose main role has historically been to respond to emergency calls for medical help outside of a hospital. Paramedics work as part of the emergency medical services (EMS), ...
s); nursing services are provided by
QARNNS Queen Alexandra's Royal Naval Nursing Service (QARNNS) is the nursing branch of the British Royal Navy. The Service unit works alongside the Royal Navy Medical Branch. As of 1 January 2006, according to former Ministry of Defence (United Kingdo ...
. In 2012, 1,522 personnel were employed by the service. Dental services are provided by the Royal Naval Dental Service, which since 1996 has formed part of a tri-service organisation ( Defence Dental Services).


Medical Assistants

Medical Assistants are deployed on all major warships and submarines of the Royal Navy, and provide
primary care Primary care is a model of health care that supports first-contact, accessible, continuous, comprehensive, and coordinated person-focused care. It aims to optimise population health and reduce disparities across the groups by ensuring equitable ...
to the crew. They also have the role of training the crew in first aid. Capital ships often carry non-commissioned medical technicians as part of the larger medical department, who perform laboratory work to aid the medical assistants and officers. Medical Assistants both male and female provide medical close support and shore side medical care to all Units of 3 Commando Brigade
Royal Marines The Royal Marines provide the United Kingdom's amphibious warfare, amphibious special operations capable commando force, one of the :Fighting Arms of the Royal Navy, five fighting arms of the Royal Navy, a Company (military unit), company str ...
. All medical assistants are ranked in the same manner as other ratings.


Medical Officers

Medical Officers may be embarked temporarily on smaller vessels when on a long operational tour, but the
Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier The ''Queen Elizabeth''-class aircraft carriers of the United Kingdom's Royal Navy consists of two vessels. The lead ship of her class, , was named on 4 July 2014 in honour of Elizabeth I and was ship commissioning, commissioned on 7 December ...
s have medical departments permanently staffed by one or two medical officers. Medical officers are ranked in the same manner as other officers, but wear red stripes between the gold on their epaulettes, and have the title 'Surgeon' added to their rank (Surgeon Lieutenant for example). All Medical Officers are required to be registered with the
General Medical Council The General Medical Council (GMC) is a public body that maintains the official register of physician, medical practitioners within the United Kingdom. Its chief responsibility is to "protect, promote and maintain the health and safety of the pu ...
and to hold a current licence to practise. Although Royal Navy medical officers are qualified doctors, they do not use the ''Dr'' prefix, like those in other British military medical organisations.


Medical Services Officers

Medical Services Officers provide support in areas such as medical administration, training, logistics and planning, as well as in more specialised areas such as
environmental health Environmental health is the branch of public health concerned with all aspects of the natural environment, natural and built environment affecting human health. To effectively control factors that may affect health, the requirements for a hea ...
and
radiological protection Radiation protection, also known as radiological protection, is defined by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) as "The protection of people from harmful effects of exposure to ionizing radiation, and the means for achieving this". Exposu ...
. They do not have to be registered medical practitioners.


Head of Royal Navy Medical Services

The Head of Navy Healthcare/Head of Royal Navy Medical Services continues to hold the appointment of Medical Director General (Naval). In 2009 the title Chief Naval Medical Officer was introduced, to be held together with the title Medical Director General (Naval) (which was retained 'for liaison with outside authorities'). In 2015 the rank of the Medical Director General (Naval) was 'de-enriched' from Surgeon Rear Admiral to Surgeon Commodore; Surgeon Commodore Peter Buxton, who was at that time in the discrete post of Head of Royal Naval Medical Service and Assistant Chief of Staff Medical, was the following year promoted to Medical Director General (Naval), retaining in addition the designation Assistant Chief of Staff Medical. Subsequently the separate appointment of Head of Royal Naval Medical Service was merged with that of Assistant Chief of Staff Medical/Medical Director General (Naval). In 2022 the post of Assistant Chief of Staff Medical/Head of the Royal Naval Medical Service was eliminated in favour of the title Head of Navy Healthcare/Head of Royal Navy Medical Services. As of 2024 the Head of Navy Healthcare/Head of Royal Navy Medical Services reports to the Director of People & Training and Naval Secretary.


Physician-General of the Navy

*9 Jun 1832 – 24 January 1841: Sir William Burnett


Inspector-General of Naval Hospitals and Fleets

*25 January 1841 – 31 December 1843: Sir William Burnett


Director-General of the Medical Department of the Navy

* 1 January 1844 – 29 April 1855: Sir William Burnett * 30 April 1855 – 20 January 1864: Sir John Liddell * 21 January 1864 – 14 April 1869: Dr
Alexander Bryson Alexander Bryson Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, FRSE Fellow of the Geological Society of London, FGS FRSSA FSAScot Royal Physical Society of Edinburgh, FRPSE (12 October 1816 – 7 December 1866) was a Scottish biologist, geologist ...
* 15 April 1869 – 31 January 1880: Inspector-General of Hospitals and Fleets Sir
Alexander Armstrong Alexander Henry Fenwick Armstrong (born 2 March 1970) is an English actor, comedian, radio personality, television presenter, singer and farmer. He is the host of the BBC One game show ''Pointless'', and is a weekday morning-show presenter on C ...
* 1 February 1880 – 26 February 1888: Inspector-General of Hospitals and Fleets Sir John Watt Reid * 27 February 1888 – 31 March 1898: Inspector-General of Hospitals and Fleets Sir James Nicholas Dick * 1 April 1898 – 11 September 1904: Inspector-General of Hospitals and Fleets Sir Henry Frederick Norbury * 12 September 1904 – 10 May 1908: Inspector-General of Hospitals and Fleets Sir Herbert Mackay Ellis * 11 May 1908 – 10 May 1913:
Surgeon-General Surgeon general (: surgeons general) is a title used in several Commonwealth countries and most NATO nations to refer either to a senior military medical officer or to a senior uniformed physician commissioned by the government and entrusted with p ...
Sir James Porter * 11 May 1913 – 31 May 1917: Surgeon-General Sir Arthur William May


Medical Director-General of the Navy

* 1917–1919: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir
William Henry Norman William Henry Norman (1812–1869) was a sea captain in Australia. As commander of HMVS Victoria (1855), HMVS ''Victoria'', he engaged in the First Taranaki War in New Zealand and the search for explorers Burke and Wills. Early life William Hen ...
* 1919–1923: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Robert Hill * 1923–1927: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Joseph Chambers * 1927–1931: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Arthur Gaskell * 1931–1934: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Reginald St George Smallridge Bond * 1934–1937: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Robert William Basil Hall * 1937–1941: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Percival Thomas Nicholls * 1941–1945: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Sheldon Francis Dudley * 1945–1948: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Henry St Clair Colson * 1948–1951: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Clarence Edward Greeson * 1952–1956: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Kenneth Alexander Ingleby-Mackenzie * 1956–1960: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Robert Cyril May * 1960–1963: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir William Robert Silvester Panckridge * 1963–1966: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Derek Duncombe Steele-Perkins * 1966–1969: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Eric Dick Caldwell * 1969–1972: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Eric Blackburn Bradbury * 1972–1977: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir
James Watt James Watt (; 30 January 1736 (19 January 1736 OS) – 25 August 1819) was a Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved on Thomas Newcomen's 1712 Newcomen steam engine with his Watt steam engine in 1776, which was f ...
* 1977–1980: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir John Stuart Pepys Rawlins * 1980–1983: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir John Albert Bews Harrison


Medical Director-General (Naval)

* 1983–1984: Surgeon Vice Admiral Roger John William Lambert * 1985–1990: Surgeon Vice Admiral Sir Godfrey James Milton-Thompson * 1990–1993: Surgeon Rear Admiral David Askey Lammiman * 1993–1994: Surgeon Rear Admiral Anthony Leslie Revell * 1994-1997: Surgeon Rear Admiral Alexander (Sandy) Craig * 1997–1999: Surgeon Rear Admiral Michael Patrick William Halden Paine * 1999–2002: Surgeon Rear Admiral Ian Lawrence Jenkins * 2001–2003: Surgeon Rear Admiral Ralph Donaldson Curr * 2003–2007: Surgeon Rear Admiral Michael Atholl Farquharson-Roberts * 2007–2009: Surgeon Rear Admiral Philip Iain Raffaelli * 2009–2012: Surgeon Rear Admiral Lionel Jarvis (Chief Naval Medical Officer/Medical Director General (Naval)) * 2012–2015: Surgeon Rear Admiral Calum James Gibb McArthur (Chief Naval Medical Officer/Medical Director General (Naval)) * 2015–2016: Surgeon Rear Admiral Alasdair James Walker (Chief Naval Medical Officer/Medical Director General (Naval)) * 2016–2017: Surgeon-Commodore Peter Buxton (Assistant Chief of Staff Medical and Medical Director General (Naval)) * 2017–2021:
Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (India), in India ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ' ...
Inga Jane Kennedy (Assistant Chief of Staff Medical, Head of the Royal Navy Medical Service and Medical Director General (Naval)) * 2021–2023 Surgeon Commodore Fleur T. Marshall (Head of the Royal Navy Medical Service and Medical Director General (Naval)) * 2023-Present: Commodore Alison Hofman (Head of the Royal Navy Medical Service and Medical Director General (Naval))


Commodore-in-chief

On 8 August 2006 Queen Elizabeth II appointed members of the Royal Family to serve as Royal Patrons, styled Commodores-in-chief, of various Royal Navy Commands, 'in recognition of the strong links between the Royal Navy and the Royal Family'.
Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. Camilla was raised in East Sussex and South Kensington i ...
was appointed Commodore-in-Chief, Naval Medical Services at that time and has continued in the role as Queen.


See also

*
Army Medical Services The Army Medical Services (AMS) is the organisation responsible for administering the corps that deliver medical, veterinary, dental and nursing services in the British Army. It is headquartered at the former Staff College, Camberley, near the ...
*
RAF Medical Services The Royal Air Force Medical Services is the branch of the Royal Air Force that provides health care at home and on deployed Military operation, operations to Royal Air Force, RAF service personnel. Medical RAF officer, officers are the Physicia ...
* William Job Maillard VC * Kate Nesbitt MC * Surgeon Vice Admiral Ian Jenkins * Surgeon Captain
Rick Jolly Surgeon-Captain Richard Tadeusz Jolly OBE (29 October 1946 – 13 January 2018) was a Royal Navy medical officer who served in the 1982 Falklands War and was later decorated by both the British and Argentine governments for his distinguished cond ...
*
Physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...
* Military medicine


References


External links


Website of the Royal Navy Medical Service


{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Navy Medical Branch Medical units and formations of the United Kingdom Naval units and formations of the United Kingdom 1918 establishments in the United Kingdom