This week's Oamaru milestone was one of seven operations performed when the bus visited Oamaru Hospital on Wednesday.
Coincidentally, the surgeon was Alastair Yule, of Dunedin, who also carried out the first operation in Oamaru when the bus first visited on March 26, 2002.
To mark the 10,000th operation, the mobile surgical bus was open to the public but a little later than the 3.30pm planned, with surgery running over time.
By then, more than 30 people had queued to get a view.
In the evening, there was a public meeting to hear from those who set up the mobile surgical service.
The $5 million big rig, which weighs close to 40 tonnes, visits rural areas of New Zealand on a five-week cycle providing more than 300 different elective surgery procedures using the most advanced technology available.
That gives rural patients, like those in Oamaru where 620 people have been treated, the chance to have surgery close to home.
At the same time, local health professionals who assist have the opportunity to share knowledge and gain skills.
