Fathers hoping to record the birth of their babies will have to rely on photographic memories now video cameras and mobile phones are increasingly being banned from maternity hospitals in the Australian state of Victoria.

Michelle Manu has been on the emergency list for a donated kidney for three years.

A range of causes have been blamed for hospital emergency departments being swamped by a holiday rush.

An 8-year-old boy is this morning fighting for his life after falling into a Rotorua geothermal pool as hot as 100C.

As she watched a car and then a truck hurtle towards her, Chelsea Walker's only thought was how she and her family could survive the head-on collision - and the pile-up that put 12 people in hospital.

Residents of the Claudelands area of Hamilton East are being urged to contact Waikato Hospital if they find any medical referral letters in their rubbish.

Waitakere Hospital staff delivered a record 24 babies in 24 hours on Thursday.

Nurses have resorted to wearing human flea collars on their ankles to protect against an infestation of the biting insects at Auckland hospitals, brought in by patients who own pets.

Children are bearing the brunt of the economic recession, with around 2000 more kids admitted to hospital last year compared to 2007, according to a report compiled by the Children's Social Health Monitor.

The medical records of hundreds of thousands of Aucklanders are in the hands of community pharmacists.