South Eastern Section

The Flying Doctor has already established trust and long-standing relationships with remote communities and a hard-won reputation for being there when it matters.  Given the chronic health workforce shortages and low retention rates of certain health professions in rural areas, the RFDS also has a focus on training  and retaining highly skills medical and nursing staff.

Our commitment to primary health care has been increasing year on year. In 2010/11, we:

  • Had 59,965 patient contacts, an increase of just over 3% growth on the year before
  • Provided much-needed health care for more than 40,000, a substantive proportion of the population in our geographical footprint
  • Increased the number of clinics, which deliver most of our primary healthcare services from 3,686 to 4,046 (an increase of nearly 10%)
  • Conducted more than 5,000 telemedicine consultations (an increase of 7.5%)

Across three states, RFDS South Eastern Section conducts regular GP-led outreach clinics to offer comprehensive range of health services. 

We fly to places well out of reach of mainstream health services.  The teams on board our aircraft include general practitioners, nurses, allied health professionals including mental health nurses and Aboriginal health workers.  Regular clinics are conducted in isolated rural towns, remote stations, Aboriginal communities, mines and oil fields, national parks and tourist resorts. 

 Clinic services include:

  • General practice
  • Nursing services
  • Dental services
  • Child and maternal health
  • Aboriginal health
  • Rural Women's GP Service
  • Mental health
  • Health promotion and community health development 

We also operate special ‘Fly Around’ clinics each year which bring medical specialist in areas like chronic disease, to people who would otherwise have not had access to specialist care.  People in rural areas in NSW also receive visits from other medical and surgical specialists and allied health workers via the rural Aerial Health Service (RAHS) operated by the RFDS and funded by NSW Ministry of Health.

In providing a comprehensive primary health care service to remote communities, our commitment is to ensure the continuity of care so valued by remote communities and the best clinical standards.  Our foundations in the Reverend Flynn’s vision of a brighter future for the bush live on in our everyday actions.