The Royal Flying Doctor Service

The "mantle of safety" inaugurated nearly 70 years ago is maintained with pride. The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia runs smoothly on com-passion, rare skill and quiet determination, says Deepti Gupta

THE tropical rain thunders down as the small aircraft turns again for another approach. Brilliant flashes of lightning light up the dark night as the pilot tries to catch a glimpse of the landing strip hidden somewhere below. On the ground, a cattleman and his wife feverishly try to signal the plane in. Buffeted by wind squalls and the lashing rain, with tenacious courage and skill, the pilot brings the place through the howling wind to touch down on the sodden grassy strip. Almost immediately, a dark figure alights from the aircraft and dashes towards the farmhouse.

Three hours later a little girl lies in bed at Cairns Hospital following an urgent operation. Fearless dedication and professionalism have saved a young life again. Hats off to the men and women of The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia!

For those of us who live in and around major cities, medical aid is always within reach. We have the privilege of being able to see a doctor whenever it suits us. Or, in a country like ours, the nearest hospital is not never too far. But imagine a country like Australia — huge, barren patches of land with no population, where your nearest neighbour is a two-hour journey away and a seriously-ill patient cannot reach a hospital in time, on his or her own steam. In the harsh outback, the sound of the Royal Flying Doctor Service aircraft humming overhead is the sweetest sound in the world.

The Royal Flying Doctor Service was started by Reverend John Flynn in 1928. During his travels as a young missionary through the deserted interior of Australia, Flynn was amazed and horrified at the dearth of medical care available to those pioneers who lived, worked and travelled in remote areas. His vision was to provide a "mantle of safety" for those attempting to settle and raise families in isolated outback areas. With the birth of aviation in Australia, Flynn seized the opportunity to reach those who were once unreachable, except through journeys of days or weeks over roads that were not roads at all. The first ‘Flying Doctor’ was Dr Kenyon St. Vincent Welch, who took up duties at Cloncurry on May 15, 1928. The first ‘Flying’ aircraft was a Qantas D550A named Victory flown by pilot Arthur Affleck. The doctor, aircraft and pilot provided the beginnings of the lifeline that was to extend throughout the country, proving Flynn’s assertion: "If you start an idea, nothing can stop it."

In 1928, however, transport was not the only problem facing those living in isolated areas. Communication over the distances that Flynn’s service travelled was all but non-existent. In 1929, a brilliant electrical engineer, Alfred Traeger, solved Flynn’s problem by inventing the pedal wireless that ran on petrol. Traeger’s invention of a pedal-operated generator gave isolated Australians the ability to contact the ‘Flying Doctor’ in an emergency. Thus, two fledgling industries, radio and aviation, joined with the age-old profession of medicine, and the Royal Flying Doctor Service was born. The three-pointed unity is depicted in the Royal Flying Doctor Service logo as well. Flynn died in 1951. Former Governer-General Sir William Slim said of him! "His hands are stretched like benediction over the inland."

While still fulfilling John Flynn’s dream, the RDFS of the nineties has grown considerably since his time. Today it has 16 bases which provide medical assistance to a service area of more than seven million square kilometres of Australia. Its aircraft perform an average of 40 emergency retrievals everyday, seven days a week, and fly nine-and-a-half-million kilometres each year. Twentyseven doctors, 70 flight nurses and 40 planes provide emergency aeromedical and routine health care to Australians in remote areas. All RFDS aircraft are pressurised, enabling patients to be flown at the equivalent of sea level, an essential requirement in the event of many serious injuries.

Emergency medical retrieval is the primary duty of the RFDS. The most common causes of injury requiring emergency assistance are motor vehicle accidents, while on the lower end of the scale environmental factors such as snake bite also contribute their share of illness. The most common reasons for emergency transport are heart disease, lung disease and complications of pregnancy and childbirth. To thousands of people living in isolated parts of Australia the ‘Flying Doctor’ is their saviour.

Recently a miracle occurred in Britain, courtesy "The Flying Doctors" TV series based on the RFDS. A 52-year-old was able to diagnose his eight-year ailment that had baffled doctors, with the help of the RFDS pain chart and symptoms description. In the nick of time he told doctors that his ailment was myasthenia gravis and they could save his life. Such episodes are encouraging, especially when tremendous hard work goes into the service.

The "mantle of safety" inaugurated nearly 70 years ago is maintained with pride. The Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia runs smoothly on compassion, rare skill and quiet determination.