American reacts to Australia's Royal Flying Doctor Service
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- Опубліковано 18 лют 2024
- Thanks for watching me, a humble American, react to Royal Flying Doctor Service
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We in Australia are very proud of our RFDS.
Yes it's there whenever any of us should need it.
Note the way we talk We, Our, Us. This is the result of a mindset where we think of others not just ourself.
@@shez5964totally, I was just writing a comment about how our natural disasters make us rely on each other. We don’t like people who can help but refuse to, thankfully there’s not many of them
@@shez5964 Me, me, me doesn't get anyone very far in our country.
It's we, we, we, and nothing less is acceptable - it could very well mean our lives, or our rellies n mates lives.
Because we're a very sparsely populated country, we REALLY notice the hole left behind by our "missing souls" who have gone from our communities.
On the economic scale, it hurts us badly, and on the personal side, the effects of losing our mates is too much to bare, so we've learnt that helping each other keeps us safer, as well as a list of "I need help cobber" mates, who are always there coz they also know next time could be them who's in need.
Im so proud of our culture here, and hope mateship never leaves our shores
This guy is American. You know, where if you can't afford an ambulance, you're left to die. I truly hope Trump wins the Presidency: They need to be taught the lesson that "Money Is The Root Of All Evil."
@@petemedium2185 I agree they need to learn the lessons, but I wouldn't wish Chumpty Dumpty on anyone, that's just plain evil lol.
Plus, we'll all be in danger if that happens mate, and we've got enough going on in this world to cope with it right now.
Right this very minute, I'm concerned about the people in Bibra Lake (WA, 20 mins away), because Adventure World theme park is on fire. Many homes and lives at risk. Fingers are crossed the westerly sea breeze dies down soon, before it gets too big
Rather than buying another gun, we donate to the RFDS. Now that’s freedom!
🇦🇺 well said 👏👍.
Touche!🇦🇺🇦🇺
So proud of this comment! 🇦🇺❤
Superb
@@heather7287your proud that you can't protect your family legally please don't breed!
When I nursed in the Kimberley, we would drive up and down the runway in our ambulance to scare off kangaroos before the RFDS plane landed.
shit yeah that would be a concern especially given their habit of waiting on the sideline for the optimum time to jump out and connect with the vehicle.
Wow that's cool good on ppl like u 🎉❤
Yep...the "roo run" is essential lol
lol that is SO Aussie :)
Roo's are not only problem. Sheep and cattle as well. I've seen an RFDS KIngair destroyed after hitting a horse on the runway at night. Thankfully no person was harmed, just the horse and aircraft.
I live in Coober Pedy and my daughter needed to get to a major hospital really quickly and this wonderful service came and got her at 3am.We got flown to Adelaide .If this service didn't exist my daughter wouldn't be here with us today. I always donate to them whenever I can. Yes it is free Ryan ❤
Thanks for sharing your story. It's nice to read comments like this.
That’s great, I hope you & your daughter never need them again 🤞🏻❤️
Amazing hope your daughter is fine now
My partner works for the RFDS, we are in SA too. He does FIFO with them so is home in Adelaide for 2 weeks then works in the outback for 2 weeks. They do an amazing job, glad to hear your daughter is ok. It's a service you hope you never need but good to know it's there.
@@davidmalarkey1302 ..Yes she is fine now thankyou ❤
There's not a lot of things you'll find most Aussies agree on but I think our pride in the RFDS is one of them.
FYI, John Flynn is on our $20 note.
Also fabulous private hospital at Tugun on southern end of Gold Coast Australia is named John Flynn Hospital...best hospital I've been in....
@@helenredmond2742 lovely to hear you say that…I used to work there. We strived for excellence in tending our lovely patients.
Very proud of them
Best hospital I’ve been in as well.
We're Australian mate, we take care of our people. We put people above money not money above people. We will do what ever it takes to help each other.
That is 100% true. I thought the way we help each other in time of fire, drought and flooding rain was ‘normal’. EVERYBODY does it! But as I got older and more travelled and wiser I learned that this it is NOT the case in many countries. ESPECIALLY so-called ‘first world’ countries. It seems most just sit there waiting for the government authorities to help them out.
It turns out our disaster response organizations are arguably the best in the world. Certainly better than the US.
Perfectly put. Cheers.
Well said 👍😊
That’s the Aussie way, when in need everyone pulls together.
It's what we do. 🤷🏻♀️
@@brettlane6908 This is why Ryan really needs to react to one of our countless disasters, cause they really do show who we are as a people
The RFDS picked up my niece and one of her parents every single week to take her to chemo. Without them the family would have been separated for 3 years and probably lost everything because it takes both parents to run their cattle station. It cost them not a single dollar. God bless these angels.
My niece has been cancer free for 8 years now and started University this week ❤️
That's incredible! Thank you for sharing. I'm so happy to hear that your niece and cancer free and has started university. The RFDS is amazing! 😊
@@zoelee8471 Thank you ❤️
What a beautiful story!
I think as a country, the Royal Flying Doctors Service is one of our proudest and most important services. Free for all. We absolutely have the best people who do amazing things. We have volunteers who do everything from fighting bushfire, floods, helping communities during and after, volunteers, amazing hey. 👏 Cheers to them all. I'm a very proud Australian. 🇦🇺
In our own case, "clearing the airstrip" also meant shifting the sheep :)
I worked at Sydney Airport years ago we had radios in our cars straight through to the control tower, one day we had a massive storm with strong winds rain and lightning ,last flight in was a domestic 737 it was rocking all over the place, as soon as it landed they closed the Airport, than a call came in from the Flying doctor service, the pilot said he was coming in to land with an emergency, the small plane was coming in, bouncing and being blown all over the place i thought he would never make it, it was heart in mouth stuff, but he did land on the runway, the tower even commented to the pilot what an experience that was to see it, the pilots attitude was, no problem.
lol I can imagine that. Would probably be a walk in the park compared to what they were used to everyday.
Reminds me of a story of a cameraman who was assigned to the cricket at the last minute, cause of someone being sick & so station was setting up the broadcast in anticipation that he wouldn't be able to keep the camera on the ball, since it normally took cameramen years to learn to do it. That particular cameraman apparently followed EVERY ball perfectly, better than any of the regular ones. Amazed crew asked him how on earth he had managed it & he looked at them confused & said the ball flies straight, so how could he find it difficult to follow? He went on to explain that he normally worked as a camera operator for wildlife documentaries, keeping cameras on things like small birds & insects in flight, so a cricket ball really was extremely easy for him in comparison. I feel like landing at a paved airport the size of Sydney's would probably be the cricket ball to the RFDS pilot :)
Yes you are probably right, his voice was calm and relaxed the whole time, but it looked so small being blown all over the place like piece of paper bowing in the wind, it took a lot of skill to land it safely, those pilots deserve more recognition.@@mehere8038
RFDS pilots have mad skills. No Roos, camels, dust, trees or potholes at Sydney airport. Bill Marsh collects stories from outback Australia, 3 of his books are solely about the RFDS.
These are the things that make us proud to be Aussies.
I live in Adelaide , South Australia. My suburban doctor used to use his annual holidays to go and volunteer for the RFDS. That’s real Aussie spirit. 💕
What a true hero !
Doctor here in Townsville does the same
@meredithpope333, is he by chance from a practice in prospect?
We also have Angel Flight - it is a service where pilots of small planes use their planes to transport non-emergency patients to out-patient appointments. They have no medical training, they just act like a taxi to the hospital from remote areas. They donate their plane, fuel, and time for this. It helps many older pilots keep the necessary air time logged and makes them feel good at the same time. We are a generous Nation.
Angel Flight people are so cooperative when there is a need
these fucking heros saved my little bros life as a baby. the only charity i donate to at least once a year.
My sister was picked up by RFDS after hemorrhaging a week after a caesarian and getting a wound infection. They rushed her to Julia Creek from the station and saved her life. Then they also rushed her in from the station after an adult onset asthma attack and saved her a second time. Worth every charity penny and thanks!
From the RFDS history page -
"It was a visit from the Queen to the Flying Doctor's Broken Hill base in 1954, less than eight months after her coronation, that would result in the Royal Assent being given to our organisation, a name change, and a link that has continues today"
The royal family are the patrons of the RFDS and make a substantial financial contribution annually
In 2004, I was flown by the RFDS from Alpha in Central Qld to Townsville (700 + kms) after a fall from a horse. They saved my life & cost me $0. This service is globally unique & reflects Aussie at its finest.
I had a major heart attack in central Queensland. The RFDS arrived & transported to Brisbane.at 11pm.
I owe my life to them.
ryan. a nation of 330 Million people, with the right political INTENTIONS CAN ACHIEVE ANYTHING Australia does it with a population of 27 Million.
Lucky they have lots of thoughts and prayers in the US, they don't need universal healthcare, a proper min wage, annual leave, sick leave etc. God takes care of them.
They usually land on top of hospitals
@bera0014 That's not the issue with America they lack "mateship" They are at each others throats and only think of themselves and would not lend a hand to their neighbours even if it cost them nothing.
The population of Australia was 6 million when the RFDS was founded.
@@bera0014 God helps those who help themselves. I can't understand why muricans seem incapable of doing anything about their dire situation.
the person at 8:40s is Alfred Treager, inventor of the pedal radio. Also, a true god send for the people in the outback.
It's free for patients but the Federal Government provided an additional 29 million this year to help contribute to the upkeep. You know it poorly researched when you hear the US voiceover. Ps Australia doesn't have bloody Ranches. We have Stations.
@garryellis3085, was about to comment this exact thing. Glad I'm not the only one that thought it. 😊
Same crap only in America, Switzerland and about 30 other nations we can legally stop criminals unlike in commie Australia 🤷♂️
I don't live in the outback, just rural but our local vet has his pilot licence and spends a lot of time volunteering for The Royal Flying Doctor Service.
Australia is truly the lucky country❤
The Royal Flying Doctors and Nurses are Amazing . As is all the Country Folk who light the runways up . Pretty Awesome Country we have here. ❤🎉
As an Aussie, I'm so proud of the Royal Flying Doctors service, im only on a disability pension but donate $25aud a month to them. Its not much but if everyone donated monthly or yearly, life would be easier for them.
Me too
Makes my heart swell. You are very generous ❤️
Me too, but $10.00, wish I could afford more, but then the dogs for the blind won’t get their $$$.
What's disgusting is that the RFDS is forced to be a charity by our self centred MPs who let banks, insurance companies and supermarkets earn billions in profit every year. Adding just 0.1% to the Medicare levy, or redirecting taxes already collected would solve this.
@@kachdragonfly The very last thing you would want is to have a politician to have any sort of control over the RFDS .
As of now resources go where they are needed if government funded resources would go where the most votes are or where the biggest donors wanted them to be .
Its Australia. This is how we are. No one gets left behind. Everyone cares. I am so blessed to live here we are a Lucky country. Full of Aussie spirit❤😊
I was pretty sure you'd understood that, in Oz, the people who fight fires, who rescue people in floods, who administer First Aid, save people's animals, are primarily volunteers. So the Flying Doctor being a free service is culturally appropriate
We were all brought up with the firm injunction that we all have a Duty of Care...NOT just towards those who we share the country/world with, but to animals and the land itself. And - think about it a minute - what would be the point of calling the general Emergency number... and speak to someone in a faraway city or town, who has no idea about the territory all around the patient - so who would themselves then have to contact the Flying Doctor...and waste precious time which might be the difference between life & death!!!
You know how lots of teens in the USA get given a car on their 16th birthday? Well at both the boarding schools I went to, girls would be given a 2-seater aeroplane when they turned 16.
I think that's why I always grin a bit when you keep using the word "ginormous" about the USA and use this as a reason that a lot of things that work in other places don't apply in USA? Oz and USA are around the same size, but in the Outback people live hundreds of miles away from their nearest neighbour, let alone a shop! Which is why, long, long before technological advances like the internet, outback kids all attended the School of the Air i.e. in their own homes on (sometimes foot pedalled) transmitters.
p.s. We don't have "ranches" in Oz - that's very much an American thing. We call our immense cattle-farms etc. "stations"...based on the fact that their wireless call-signs are "XYZ Station" (did you know there was/is(?) one station which was the size of Texas ?)
Growing up a bunch of my teachers were volunteers for the CFA or SES. Even outside of disasters people help each other, especially in rural areas. I once got bogged and while waiting for my parents to come and pull me out with the 4wd a crane truck pulled over and helped me. When my car battery died on a 30 degree day several cars offered help. I think Australia should be known for just how willing people are to help out total strangers
…… it is called Anna Creek Station………
One of the highlights for me as a musician was playing over the school of the air in Katherine NT.
@@elizabethroberts6215 Correction. Anna Creek Station is not bigger than Texas. It is however bigger than the largest ranch in Texas, King Ranch, by 7 times. Anna Creek is bigger than Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey and Rhode Island.
@@YeahNo ……it was before it was cut up…………
There would be no fully functional outback communities without this incredible service, or isolated farming stations either! Amazing dedication by extraordinary volunteers! 🙋
Hey Ryan, a couple of weeks ago my daughter had a premature and breach birth at 33 weeks and 2 days. It was an emergency cesarean. She lives near a town called Millicent in South Australia. It’s about 35 miles from a fair regional centre called Mt Gambier - just over 250 miles from our capital city - Adelaide. Mt Gambier doesn’t have capacity for such young babies. So they flew my grand daughter and her dad to Adelaide at about 9.30am - there was a pilot, a doctor and 4 specialist nurses. When my daughter had stabilised at about 6.30pm she was also flown the more than 250 miles on a second flight. My daughter and my granddaughter have now been returned by the RFDS to Mt Gamber. All 3 flights are free 😊
I hope you will donate now. Had to comply with doctors once and I had an RFDS flight. Not much fun as a patient but better than a 200km road trip when you have stuffed your back.
I live in Mt Gambier and my mother was a Theatre Nurse at Mt G hospital (she is newly retired but works a few days a week in Millicent). I hope your daughter and baby are doing well. xx
I was also flown from Mount Gambier to Adelaide in 1999. My waters broke at 29 weeks, with twins
Millicent! Lived there for a few years in the late 90's to 2003, then moved to the Mount! I also got picked up in Millicent for a trip to Adelaide due to a heart attack!
Another here, from down your way.
K'doo farmers ... we heard the flight directly overhead, then moments later, heard them go down in Dismal Swamp on their way to collect one of my kgtn students in the Mount ... en rote to Westmead, NSW
His life was utimately saved per liver transplant ... ... neither family nor friends will ever forget (or take for granted) those in the air for us all.
Back in 2008, the RFDS flew me in a King Air from Cairns to Townsville for heart surgery- there wasn’t adequate medical service in Cairns at the time for my procedure- the RFDS were amazing monitoring me the whole time and it was free- an ambulance was waiting at Townsville airport to transfer me to the hospital- the coordination from hospital to hospital was spot on- can’t say enough good things about the whole situation 👍🏻👍🏻🇦🇺
RFDS played a huge part in saving my life 3½ years ago. While I was away on holiday in Cairns some 1700kms north of my home town of Brisbane I had a heart attack and though I was cared for at Cairns Base Hospital I was in immediate and urgent need of an aortic valve replacement and the people who could best do the surgery where based at the Princess Alexendra Hospital in Brisbane. So, I was flown directly to from Cairns to Brisbane by the RFDS for surgery the next day. The flight took just three or so hours. I can't thank them enough for their outstanding patient care, professionalism and efficiency. The flight cost me nothing. They are absolute legends and I since donate on regular basis to them. They are one of the most trusted, genuine and worthwhile charities in Australia. 🙂❤
The pedal powered radio also became the School of the Air and communications between outback stations. Each household was given a medical box with numbered medicines and a chart that showed the areas of the human body with numbers so that anyone ringing through with a complaint, the distant doctor could diagnose and tell them what number pill they should take. They would hold on until the RFDS arrived. It's a fascinating history.
So true Aussie are self sufficient . The choice is simple , live or die . Growing up in the 60s help was hours away . My old man got thrown from a horse 5 miles from home & broke a leg & he dragged himself home down a fence line & another friend of the family got bitten by a brown snake in a header comb . He new was a hundred miles out of Coonamble & cut his finger off with a tomahawk . It's survival . The RFDS is a cherished part of our lives but they are never called until all else fails ! Also the video you played is crap we don't live on ranches . They are stations or farms . Fun fact all the pubs in the outback when you sit at the bar you chew a coaster & put though a note & tumb tack and through it up to the ceiling . Aussie spirit .
Glad you mentioned the numbered med box. Working in remote WA we have to figure out what the problem is from the patients’ stories and then advise what action to take. I remember one day the mum and I were phoning each other at least hourly until the RFDS plane arrived at their station in the middle of the Nullarbor. Her little one had got into granddad’s pills…eeek! He and mum were lifted to Perth.
I have always found the stories of the nurses who preceded the doctors to be fascinating.
@@paulsullivan9697 my great, great, great, great grandfather's brother had his leg amputated on the kitchen table after a horseriding accident
Today, the flying doctors service caters to sailors in trouble off the coast of Australia too, but sailors don't have the numbered pills in the box, so that apparently causes some dramas & tension, as the RFDS radio people are just so used to the standardised pill boxes that they don't find it easy to switch to the limited supplies that sailors carry in the small space of their yachts. They're still the experts in radio based diagnoses & medical care though
Never leave a mate behind, the RFDS are bloody awesome, even saved me!
My husband was on a minesite when he stopped breathing. The RFDS were called and took him to the nearest country hospital where he was stabilised until he was able to be transferred to the city of Perth. He survived thanks to the RFDS. We were never billed for this service. We had been donating for years never knowing we would have to use it in the future.
I grew up in Ceduna, South Australia where my Dad was a GP + although not part of the RFDS, he would often fly out to even more remote communities to provide medical services. I often got to travel along and it was an amazing experience to see the community, resilience and resourcefulness of remote rural Australia.
There was one funny story. Remote farms would often have medical kits on the farm. The medications in these were numbered so that people could consult doctors by phone and then take a medication recommended by them. One chap called up and was recommended to take 'medication no.9'. After a few hours with no reply, the hospital called him to check how he was doing. He told them that there was no medication number nine left in the kit, but he took a four and a five and was feeling pretty good 😂. They are built different in the country side :)
😵💫😹😹😹
This is one incidence when 4 + 5 does Not = 9! 😮😳😲😬
Sounds about right. 👍
The Royal Flying Doctors Service are amazing. I’ve seen them come out at any hour of the day sometimes at very remote locations and they do this 24/7, 365 days a year. Amazing bunch of folks. So many folks owe them their life.
My kids have needed that service several times (lung disease). I dont mind donating to them at all❤ the pilots are amazing, the staff is kind and theres a shed with a fully equipped room for the patient while transferring from plane to ambo❤❤ they deserve full funding. Btw, NZ also have medical flights
When my son was 10 years old he was flown from Karratha to Perth on the RFDS to children’s hospital where his life was saved. He’s almost 54 years old now.
That's a long flight too
My ex husband had a heart attack 20 years ago, on-site, about 2 hours by mostly unsealed road from Karratha. The site medic had him transferred by road to Karratha Hospital, assessed, then flown by RFDS to Jandakot then helicoptered to Royal Perth Hospital ( before the southern suburbs Fiona Stanley Hospital was built).
What Americans don't understand is that Australia is roughly the same land mass as the USA & our state, WA, takes up nearly a third of it.
The distances are amazing.
The RFDS is awesome but the orator calling them "flight nurses" is a bit of an understatement. These are critical care nurses, the best of the best.
Jandakot airport is one of the busiest in the world for small planes & choppers & where the WA RFDS operates from.
It's hard to be near RPH or the Children's Hospital to see the choppers coming in to land on the helipads because you know it's bad if they haven't used roads.
So many Australians are alive because of the initiative of Rev John Flynn.
Major mining companies obviously donate hugely to the RFDS. It's not just everyday Australians. We couldn't fund it without corporate donations.
Wait til this guy finds out that a huge number of our workers fly-in-fly-out to work, anywhere from an hour or so to The Goldfields, to roughly 3 hours to The Pilbara for their shifts. That's something even eastern staters don't understand. 😂😂
Fly to work for an 8 on 6 off shift. Or longer. FIFO is definitely an Australian thing.
@@perthgirlwa2407……am in an Eastern State & understand perfectly what FIFO workers’ are. They’re in Qld, too. Have travelled extensively throughout Oz, by car, truck, tour bus, rail, & air.
One day, left El Questro Station at 7:00am, to Karratha, then Darwin, Adelaide, Sydney, & home at 10:30pm, same date....sure chalked up some air miles’ that day………lucky I love flying…………
Those FIFO flights are the highlights of the destination boards at the international airports! There is always some outback destination that generates a WTF?
Any Australians reading the comments, please donate a few dollars to the RFDS next time you see a collection tin. Thanks,you never know when you may need their help. ❤🛩🛩
As someone who had to use the RFDS very recently I can attest to the wonderful service these guys provide. I live in Central QLD & had 2nd & 3rd degree burns to my feet. Our local hospital is is not designed for burns patients so i was flown to Brisbane for a month of treatment. Then i was flown back. I bless all these guys & the wonderful doctors & nurses who treated me
One thing I love ❤ about Australia is….
Aussies really care very much for each another.
I hope every Aussie will contribute some money each year to help the RFDS, so they can continue their amazing work saving lives.
I support the RFDS every month, they do an amazing job and are so needed. Thank you for showing how important they are, Mate
How many Aussies watched the TV show Royal Flying Doctors?
I was one who did… The show was on for years. The planes can also land on roads….
I live 1.5 hours away from our State capital and they use a helicopter to take serious cases to the Perth Hospital, even though we have a hospital where I live.
I did, but seems to be lots of confusion about it in the comments, about the name & when it was on & if it was one or multiple shows.
The one I watched started as a telemovie or miniseries & then went on to become a regular once a week series & ran in the same era as "a country practice" I can't remember it's exact name, could have been as you said or may have had an additional "the" added to it, or may have been missing the "royal", was definitely the full words, not abbreviations though. I think from memory A country practice was on tue & wed & flying doctors was on thu nights, the former on channel 7, the latter on channel 9
@@mehere8038 they did put on a new series recently.... I have watched both, but nothing beats the original series.
I loved that show!
@@mehere8038 There’s the original mini-series The Flying Doctors (1985), then the tv series The Flying Doctors (1986-1992) set in Coopers Crossing which lasted 9 seasons, then R.F.D.S (1993) where they moved to Broken Hill which last only 1 season. Now we have RFDS (2021) which streams on 7+ and so far has 2 seasons.
I bought the originals on dvd from Crawfordsdvd.
Ryan, I’ve never seen you so interested, impressed and delighted at a video before x
The thing with Australia, especially earlier settlements, is the terrain can be that inhospitable that it's simply not feasible for survival to adopt a 'bugger you jack, I'm alright' attitude. My late Grandmother used to work on a remote cattle station in the 1930s (it's where she met my late Grandfather), and she had an amazing photo of one of the earlier RFDS flights landing nearby to assist an injured worker, with pretty much the entire community coming out to see what they could do to help. That's the thing, especially when you're stuck in the middle of nowhere, when your survival depends upon it there's not really such as thing as capital 'I' individuality in the same way that I think a lot of Americans see it. A lot of family survived some very inhospitable and desperate conditions through a very simple thing like basic community respect and cooperation.
The RFDS relies on bequests, sponsorships and donations to bridge the gap in its operational funding and to purchase its 'flying intensive care units' at a cost of more than $7 million each, as a patient the service is free.
And the rest, a PC-12 cost's more than seven million before they kit it out. Then the operation costs per year are insane.
not just emergencies either, they fly a doctor into remote areas periodically to give people checkups and deliver medicine.
We are so proud of the RFDS it's an amazing free service 😊😊😊😊😊
My brother flies a medical rescue helicopter. This is a Lifeflight helicopter. My husband was flown from our town to a bigger center when he had a medical emergency. There is a Dr and a nurse on each of the choppers. They are true lifesavers.
These people, including your brother, are the salt of the earth. I wouldn't be alive today without them ❤
Some places are too far for helicopter
Ffs Ryan save up and come visit Western Australia. Go Outback. Request to visit the RFDS. Oh and have a look at just how big WA is. The State of WA is Half of Australia ! Oh most Outback stations have their own runway.
Helicopters are too expensive, too slow, and short ranged to do this job.
The RFDS is the biggest operator of the Pilatus 12 aircraft shown in this video.
The reverend John Flynn was born at Moliagul where the world's largest gold nugget (the welcome stranger) was discovered.
The pedal radio was very clever and useful device. Used during ww2 for remote coast-watchers of the pacific.
@@shazza160 I agree. However choppers can get right where accidents occur and airlift the injured straight away. They dont replace the Flying Dr they are just another medical transfer option
People donate yearly to this service as it is essential for our citizens. Having just recently traversed the Nullarbor Plain if you had a crash out there it would be at least 12 hours by road for an ambulance to get to you and transport you to a hospital. There are landing zones dotted along the highway for such emergencies which is a fantastic thing to see,
Apparently in dedicated RFDS landing zones on roads, the road is assessed to ensure it is straight & surface solid & flat enough & has no obsticles for the wings. If there are edge of road reflective marker posts present, on those dedicated landing zone locations, those posts are removable & so whoever is waiting there for the plane will be instructed to remove those posts to prepare the road into a plane landing strip. I think that's pretty cool :)
@@mehere8038……main road into Singapore from Airport was designed to accept military jets’ for landing, & takeoff………
Many years ago two families were camping in an isolated town in South Australia when a plane landed on the highway next to our caravan park. It was the local RFDS pilot who offered us a cheap tourist flight. Best flight ever- he even let me take the controls. I was seventeen. We landed back on the road and waved him goodbye. Such an awesome memory!
This service Ryan is a non profit organization , which means its also free , just like our other hospital services. But you can offer donations.
I'm one of the very lucky people who's life has been saved by the RFDS. Not only did they save my life, but my ex partners life, who was 1 of the 5 severely injured during cyclone George, up at the FMG / BHP Yandi mine site WA.
We, in rural Australia, can't survive without them. We as a country, owe them much.
It's all totally free
And, it's a national disgrace that this service is funded by charity, and not government backed
@@williamorchard16 I agree with that up to a certain point. It's a double edged sword mate, because all money donated/raised, goes directly where needed, and isn't subject to government corruption or government manipulation, which can be crippling to a government regulated organisation
Where I live in Bundaberg Queensland. We have a base for RFDS, my Inner Wheel club donated $1,000 last year to help and went to see the base. We were lucky because 3 planes were there to see and 1 just landed. The base is right next door to "LifeFlight" who run helicopters to take patients who are hurt to hospitals. This service is also free for the public.
I regularly give to two charities. One is the Flying Doctor. The other is Guide dogs for the blind
I have had 2 family members who have received these wonderful services and yes, they were both completely FREE.
My father was born in Hermidale, north-western NSW in 1923 on a cattle farm.
His Dad was gored by one of his bulls in 1930 and the only way to get him to the nearest hospital (in Dubbo) was two days on the back of an ancient bullock dray on an unpaved road. He died just as they arrived in Dubbo.
The RFDS is worth every cent. Peel and Flynn were visionaries.
EDIT: The "Royal" title was added in 1955 after being granted by Queen Elizabeth II.
My dad was born in 1924 & that was life then . Tell kids now & they don't believe you ! . No idea .
Town??? There's hardly any towns; that airstrip is probably on a private rural property. The people who work on the property are probably those setting it up for the night landing. The RFDS units are based mostly at rural city/town airports.
It doesn't tell half the story though. They average nearly 75,000 kilometres, make 200 landings, and transport nearly 200 patients - not each year, not each week, but each day. All at no cost to the user.
The aircraft are set up for high level emergency medical care. They also do rural clinics, provide dental services and heaps more, with about 800 patient contacts per day. They also provide medical kits to remote locations (like rural properties and communities). If someone is ill, they can consult by phone or radio, and be advised which medications to use. All of this conceived and developed in the 1920s. An utter icon of an organisation.
BTW. That clip is not the original, but a dubbed over American version. There are heaps more clips covering typical operations in different parts of the country, including some amazing actual cases.
Not to mention some newfangled lighting too. When I was on the stations, we used appletins that had toilet rolls soaked in diesel in em :D
Yeah I was going to say a lot of the larger properties have landing strips set up for this reason, and it's one shared between a few.
@@BaradineAllawa so THAT's why people thought they'd better stock up on toiletpaper during the pandemic. It does have an emergency use :)
Forty years ago, well before internet, I worked in a remote area and used to hear the radio to the medical services. You heard the most extraordinary and intimate details of lives, generally broadcast by a little station wife who had a really comprehensive medical kit and would deal with head injuries, stabbing, miscarriages, STDs, no privacy for those people. If necessary the RFDS would fly in. There are heaps of dirt strips, as a lot of remote station managers or owners have a small plane. My previous GP here in Perth used to do tours of duty as an RFDS doctor for 2 weeks. We are super proud of our RFDS which currently has 81 planes.
You should look up School of the Air, which still exists.
I don't understand why school of the air wasn't better utilised during the pandemic. With such an extensive history of teaching remotely, they should have been an asset our country could use to boost our remote learning programs to levels other countries could only dream of. I dont' get why we didn't use them to much greater effect than we did
@@mehere8038 It's all on the internet now, even "The School of the Air" uses the internet now, and that's exactly what was used during the brief lockdowns, where possible. Not every child has access to a computer at home, nor can every family afford to have unlimited internet even if there is a computer/device. Although I'm retired, I still have friends who are still teaching in classrooms so I know how much effort they put into ensuring their students were able to continue with their classwork during the lockdowns.
I’m a regular donator to the RFDS. When my step dad had a heart attack they flew him to a nearby city hospital to treat it.
The Royal Flying Drs Service and those involved are the true meaning of absolute legends, they have saved thousands of us rural Aussies from extended lengths of trauma and pain or certain death.
I personally was booked on a last minute RFDS night flight in 2016 from Port Lincoln to Adelaide with acute kidney failure, I don;t remember a lot of the 45 minute trip but the RFDS staff were awesome and made me feel comfortable and like everything was going to be ok. I was transferred to Ambulance in Adelaide and delivered to to emergency at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in good time which allowed treatment to begin immediately and luckily for me after 10 days in the R.A.H. I'd recovered enough to be able to go home.
Everyone who lives in Australia or visits our great country should donate to the RFDS whenever you can because you just never know when you or a loved one might need their services.. ✈👍
I've popped into random rural pubs (bonafied traveler pubs) out Woop Woop and there's money pinned to the whole ceiling that locals donate to pay for the Royal Flying Doctor Service!
Amazing people! I was born in an Air Ambulance. Respect to all our healthcare workers down here🤘🇦🇺👍
Fun Fact. I worked for the company that did the aircraft fuselage retro fit for the RFDS. We installed the cargo doors for the KingAirs. The cargo doors would allow the stretchers to be loaded and unloaded with ease into the aircraft. I was in the purchasing department at the time and I would organise the entire kits to be ordered. These jobs were huge and came in at over AUD $100,000.00. The jobs were performed at Bankstown airport.
My son stabilises patients and calls the RFDS to get them to hospital. Last week he worked with our Aboriginal people for 90 hours as he is the only person qualified for emergencies. He has just been honoured with his wife for more than 20 years of service. It is killing him but he loves the people out there. If the RFDS cannot come fast enough because they are busy. He operates alone.
Canada uses Medi Vac planes. My son did 2 years in one of those for the Inuits. Yes, The RFDS is free. I live on the East Coast but my husband and I are both heart and cancer patients. If we need surgery it is a plane or a helicopter to Brisbane and they are free. I really want to see them talk me into a helicopter. We were both poisoned by a neighbour in our 20’s 3 times. We were told all of these illnesses would come and they have. The neighbour didn’t know he was poisoning us.
How did your neighbor poison you? And how did the docs know it would lead to specific problems down the road?
@@yeahitwillhappen, he used a derivative of Agent Orange that was illegal back then. It was supposed to be mixed with 1 cup of the chemical to 200 gallons of water. He didn’t use any water because he didn’t know and it was his holiday home and he didn’t want any grass to cut on his weekends. He probably went a long time ago because he was spraying it.
I then lived in NSW and the 3rd weekend when we couldn’t breathe we called the Fire Brigade. They were passing out with breathing gear on. One of them gave out our name. The next day I got a call from a Professor at Monash University in Clayton, Victoria on my unlisted phone number. He detailed everything that the product would do to us. He wanted us to take the neighbour to Court and I asked if that would stop any of it. He told me no and I couldn’t do it.
@@yeahitwillhappen probably DDT or agent orange or another common agricultural chemical of the era that no-one knew were a problem at the time, but years later found out everyone exposed (including themselves) was now on a cancer path
@@yeahitwillhappen Blood tests would show up foreign proteins (poison) which they would be able to identify and manage.
I was pregnant and needed to be airlifted out by the Royal Flying Doctors (RFDS) Service. Once my son was born we were flown home free of charge as well. My whole hospital stay was also free for the 4 weeks I had to stay there
I live remote WA both my husband and I were flown to Perth. The ROYAL FLYING DRS ARE FANTASTIC. The drs on the flight so dedicated. Big thanks to the RFD
I often hear the amazement & wonder in your voice when you are reacting to the Australian videos. This time I heard empathy, compassion & I think a bit “oh wow,I wish we had this……”
Thank you for your respect when you watch the videos, even the stupidity silly ones.
Sending you love from 🇦🇺
Yes, thank you. I have lived in these outback.places and appreciate you doing this post and maybe educating others. And surprised that your big american country dont have such a service.
Finally I feel so proud of my country and how this service continues.
My father gave his full adulthood as a St John Volunteer in our country home town in more settled regions. After some 50 ofd years he was awarded medals and on his death the presence of the St John Ambulance as he had become Brother of St John
The RFDS flys out of the airport about 10km away from me. the PC12's are awesome little aircraft, a very distinct sound and excellent performance. The Airforce use them as trainers to get pilots used to jet fighters. Im not particularly religious, but worth a silent prayer whenever one flys over.
The Pedal radios were an absolute gamechanger for remote community's. not only for medical support, but you could suddenly could have a chat to your neighbour even if they were 100's of km away. the equipment was also used to start the 'school of the air', which could deliver something close to a 'classroom' learning environment for kids living out in the sticks. the paperwork came in the mail, but you still had a teacher and classmates you could talk to. Defiantly worth a video on.
RAAF use the PC-21 for pilot training & formerly the PC-9 not the PC-12.
There’s only around 26 million of us so everyone is precious and we are renowned for looking after our own.
I just got emergency dental treatment from the RFDS, i'm in Lightning Ridge NSW, an outback mining town. 25yrs ago they flew me to Dubbo base hospital because i went into early labour. My step father was flown to Sydney's St Vincent's hospital for surgery and urgent care after a cancer diagnosis, and my mother was flown to Dubbo, then Sydney, by them for critical surgery. Also Angel flight helps out here too for non emergencies. I love our country ❤ 🇦🇺
Mate us Aussies we’re using “renewables” around the house for radios and the washing machine long before we had Power Stations. Not to mention all the windmills pumping water on Farms out whoop whoop
A lot of Australians donate monthly to rfds to provide funds for their operations
Many outback highways also have landing strip markings for when the RFDS comes calling.
Certainly very proud of our RFDS. I spent 14yrs as a volunteer ambulance officer assisting the paramedics in all areas. Volunteers are utilized in rural Tasmania, where ambulance is free.
Yes RFDS service is free. they do have corporate funding and some government funding but most comes from donations. they also cover the entire country, its not uncommon to see RFDS aircraft flying into the cities with patients. We also have charities like Little Wings that specialise in flying kids and chronically ill to and from hospitals from their rural homes.
As a young boy we learned about this in primary school. Like grade 3. One of the great firsts of Australian civilizational programs.
So proud to be Australian ✌️
My sister in law was a flight nurse with RFDS, and had a nursing friend who worked with RFDS ( more amazing because she hated flying and it helped her cope with it). Kudos to the RFDS….. we city folk donate regularly.
So proud of Australia ...when you do something you do it so well...my heart is for you all ...now I live in Italy but my heart is still there with you Aussies❤
The planes in 1930s used to use the middle of the local racecourse across the gravel road from my grandparents property as a landing strip. It was used as a grazing paddock by my great uncle owner between racedays so the sheep had to be quickly cleared off to make way for a landing.
We also have air ambulance and rescue helicopters, with onboard medicos, which often have to manoeuvre in tight situations . One landed on the country road between rows of pine and gum trees near home a couple of years back to stabilise then airlift my hubby about 30 mins away to hospital after an accident.
Most stations in the outback have airstrips. I lived on a remote cattle station in the Kimberley's and we had the mail plane come once a week. Other times visitors flew in. The RFDS is a vital service for people living in the outback.
I have friends who have family members that are doctors who volunteer their time to the RFDS. It is a remarkable service and I am proud to donate and that this is a service in Australia.
Early plains, nurses and doctors were strapped to the wings of the plain.
So proud of them and of being Australian. Thank you to everyone at RFDS for all that you do and thank you to everyone who donates to this Not For Profit FREE service ❤❤❤
RFDS brings tears of pride to me eyes mate. 😂😂😂😂
The RFDS and Rev Flynn was taught in primary school when we were kids so it was ingrained early as a part of our cultural history, we even went to Broken Hill to see the base there, as well as things like the school of the air (another outback service) and things like mines etc.
Whenever is see an RFDS badge seller or fundraiser I always give a donation. As, obviously, many Australians do. It’s a service all Australians should be proud of.
The RFDS also provides regular outback medical clinics, dental clinics, mental health support, and non-emergency medical transport.
Their website has a live flight path map of their planes, so you can have a look at how many of their planes are in the air and where at any given point in time. Right now as I type this there are 14 RFDS planes in the air.
There is also a fictional soapy-style drama TV show based on the RFDS in Broken Hill, mostly filmed on location in and around Broken Hill and the local RFDS base. The show is creatively called "RFDS". There was also a much older show, same name, same concept, filmed in the I think 70's or 80's.
Another large part of what they do also involves taking patients home again after they've been treated, and they are often called upon by rural hospitals to transport patients that need more advanced specialised care to big city hospitals with better facilities, and again, bring them home afterwards.
And yes, for the patients, it's all free of charge. Outback communities do everything they can and take every chance they get to raise money for the RFDS. Ask anyone that lives remotely to recommend 3 charities to donate money to, the RFDS will be on everyone's list.
The older show was called "the flying doctors" I think, could be a slight variation on that, but it was the full name, not the initials. Started with a telemovie or mini-series & then became a long running soapy style show, running around the same time as "a country practice" started.
The original movie/mini series used real life cases the flying doctors had actually responded to as it's content too, very much dramatised, but each case they attended was based on a medical case they had actually responded to, the most notable one being a brain bleed that needed the skull drilled to release the pressure from inside it to keep the person alive & the flying doctors used a regular power drill to drill the hole into the person's head & save their lives. Obviously that one was way too good not to include in the tv version :) landing on roads featured too, with dramatisations of vehicles also on the roads at the same time as the planes (which of course doesn't happen)
@@mehere8038 Ah yes, it was called The Flying Doctors. Thank you for that little trip down memory lane.
Ryan, the Reverand John Flynn pioneered the Flying Doctors, and the School of the Air, whereby students on remote properties could talk to their teacher, or listen to a lesson.... but as electricity was few and far between, requiring some form of generator, he invented the pedal-radio. Where you pedal to charge the capacitor (battery), or simply to actually run the equipment. Imagine a spin class at the gym powering the lights for the same building.
it's kinda crazy we don't use exercise equipment to generate power, rather than require electricity to power it when you think about it
We do have hospital ambulance choppers for metro areas but for remote country the RFDS Is needed
Yes, the Queen or King do have to do something.
It is an honour they can bestow upon any organisation, like a Knighthood, only for the organisation rather than a person.
From Smithton to Launceston I was flown and I didn't get a bill for it
I have been supporting the RFDS for the last few years and am so glad to see this video. Thank you for sharing it. I feel so proud to support such a worthwhile program saving many lives.
Back I the seventies, When I lived a couple of hundred miles to the nearest hospital, the RFDS used to fly in to administer the TA and polio Sabin vaccines to my baby. This service was completely free.
We live within an hours flight by helicopter to a nearby hospital. Unfortunaley it took over 3 hours due to bad weather conditions to get my son in law to safety after having a heart attack. an ambulance was sent at first but they managed to get lost on the way to the property.. son in law has had bypass since and is doing okay for now. This happened two years ago. We are blessed with having the Royal Flying doctors flying service around the nation.
we are so proud of our RFDS . 4 years ago i had a heart attack , i lived 10 mins from the hospital in Brissie , my mate in the next bed was flown by the RFDS 1,200 km from west of Brissie . we live in a great country . sometimes it takes a sickness and hospital visit to realize how lucky we are in Australia .
Some of the main regional highways have straight sections with runway markings to be used by the RFDS
The RFDS radio service was a major communication channel in the outback. I'm sure communications have changed greatly in recent years but in 1979 whilst travelling out to Kings Canyon in the Northern Territory our 4 wheel drive broke an axle stranding us. I remember that you could pass messages through the RFDS each hour and our resuce was facilitated by them. The RFDS saved many people not actually injured, but in desperate situations
The Flying Doctor is way more than an air ambulance. They fly in and set up regular clinics for a wide range of medical services in remote communities so provide everyday medical services. They may do that once a month, or as needed. As an example, a pregnant woman in that community would be able to have all the pre-natal check-ups that someone in the city would expect as normal.
And sometimes even waiting for an aircraft is too slow, and so the Flying Doctor conducts services via radio.
I was working on a remote station once and a young guy was gored by a bull. This was before the internet and so everything was via short wave radio. The larger stations have their own helicopter, so the patient was helicoptered in to the homestead. We got him onto the cook's table and the Doctor instructed the cook on how to clean up and sew up the lad over the radio. I was one of the ones holding the guy still while the cook worked on him. The Doctor's instructions were clear and concise. It was as if he was using the cook's eyes and hands as his own hands. The cook had been through it before, and had first aid training so was able to what was needed without any problems.
For this exact reason remote stations have emergency medical kits on hand that have a lot more in them than a regular first aid kit. The Doctor flew in later to check on the cook's handiwork, and make sure the patient was okay.
It is an understatement to say that people in the bush hold the Royal Flying Doctor Service in very high regard. It is also held in very high regard by the wider Australian community. The Flying Doctors, John Flynn the first plane, and the pedal radio are all featured on the Australian $20 bill.
It was Alfred Traeger who invented the pedal radio that enabled the Flying Doctor to function. For two years he flew with the Flying Doctor all over Queensland perfecting the device so that anyone could use it and training people. It was so successful that the Flying Doctor radio was then used to create the School of the Air, a service in which children in remote communities could get lessons over the radio as they pedalled. Adelaide Miethke was responsible for setting that up. Many people were important in developing the Flying Doctor and related services, but ultimately it is down to the dedication of John Flynn that put it all together.
BTW, the Royal appellation is a form of Royal patronage. It was the young Queen Elizabeth, in one of her first actions as a new Queen who bestowed the appellation on the Flying Doctors. She went to the Flying Doctor base in Broken Hill and spoke over the radio to a young mother in a remote location. Royal patronage has benefits, especially in dealings with governments. The governors of all the states, as well as the Governor General are all patrons of the service. As you can imagine, the RFDS needs priority use of the skies and radio communications, and the ability to build significant infrastructure at airports etc that is all facilitated by their "official" status. It also helps with fund raising activities.
It is amazing, however, that Flynn set it up to be like the Red Cross, and be an independent organization, supported by donations as a charity. Many people leave money to the Flying Doctor in their will. It has been a significant success.
Well researched & presented.
My grandson was safe by this lovely people. I I will thank them for the rest of my life! They a the the best!!!!! THANK YOU!!!!
I always give to the Royal Flying Doctor Service they are true angels ❤❤🇦🇺🐨🐨🇦🇺
These services are at no cost to the patient/family. If the Alice Springs Hospital can’t manage the injury, they would be evacuated to Adelaide, the closets capital service with tertiary hospitals (again at no patient cost). State Boundaries don’t exist in this context. In the Far West of NSW is Broken Hill. If a patient from at the Broken Hill Hospital (locals and their large area they support) are most likely to be evacuated to Adelaide, which is much closer than the NSW capital of Sydney. Hospitals are state government funded, it is about looking after patients. Some RFDS regions and the NSW Ambulance now have jet aircraft that can land on those dirt runways.
There are several places in SA, NSW and QLD where the remote roads will actually have runways built into them. The following is a short video of an excercise to test this for the SA Police aircraft, a RFDS Jet and the SES (State Emergency Services) ua-cam.com/video/ZktxR5xAX1I/v-deo.htmlsi=IQJ1K6GuPJ0jxh1H
In relation to the RFDS being a charity, it does however get contracted by local health districts or the health ministry for aircraft availability at certain locations, which are their predominent income. Additionally, the RFDS may be contracted for other health services, such as regular remote towns health visits. An aircraft with a medical team will fly to one or two towns to provide clinics. The planes may be carrying physiotherapists, specialist doctors, occuptional therapists etc from the local hospital or it might be a dental visit where the denitst and dental nurse are on the RFDS staff. This is another critical part of supporting people living in remote areas.
I also believe that remote people have a box with numbers items in them. They may be transferred to a dr or nurse pracitioner whilst the planes are flying out, and they may say, take two tablets of number 11, and apply cream #A onto the affected area.
Then there is the School of the Air which has centres throughout remote areas of the various states funded by their Department of Education. These services have been going for probably around 70 years, well before Zoom everyone got use to during COVID! Here is a UA-cam of the Broken Hill School of the Air ua-cam.com/video/uaiPFSYi8c0/v-deo.htmlsi=OAvLqZ0mUu3SdKsM
A bit of history and modern update ua-cam.com/video/5WKlknzRcUU/v-deo.htmlsi=G-BMRscqu8Ha4hwc
A 1962 short documentary ua-cam.com/video/WgZO7Ht_0M0/v-deo.htmlsi=WF9dGWWSNXzaMXPq
A 1958 short documentary from the ABC (one of our public TV networks), which includes the class performing a play ua-cam.com/video/zc4Jmj6Zpfs/v-deo.htmlsi=t_BOlIrhn8TTiANy
This video is a promotional video form the National Broadband Network in Australia, but it is interesting ua-cam.com/video/oJpqMFIFnbQ/v-deo.htmlsi=Da1Pf0gIQRzC-rSy
This is an example of the kids coming to town for an event. ua-cam.com/video/tAUooXyUHOE/v-deo.htmlsi=7ggKzB6JQzpLtAHb. When I use to stay with my grandfather in Broken Hill on holidays in the 1970s, we went a ocuple of times to visit the School of the Air there. At that time it was only radio, with packs of resources sent out by mail which might take a week to get to the home, and their assignments had to come back the same way!
RFDS is also a charity, so you dont typically pay for the service at all. They also have much larger aircraft than what is shown here, Jets even and twin engine turbo props. My dad had to take a flight on them several times to be rushed to Perth from a town about 240KM away when he was very sick towards the end of his life. They used the twin engine turbo props for him and sometimes they would stop and pickup a second patient on the way in. On all of his flights there was not only 2 pilots, but 2 nurses and a full doctor. The doctor was a volunteer who used to fly on RFDS services when he was not on duty at one of the larger private hostpitals in Perth.
RFDS lands at Jandakot airport south of Perth for all flights that come back to Perth in the lower south west. Jandakot is a smaller airport which only handles general aviation for the most part. From there an ambulance is waiting to transfer the patient(s) to usually Royal Perth Hospital, or Charlie Gardiner Hospital (Probably Fiona Stanley now). I have been told if you are a full private patient and have a practicing doctor who works out of St John of God Murdoch that you can go there too. The two hospitals (Fiona Stanley, and St John of God Murdoch) are literately only about 5 minutes ambulance ride from Jandakot Airport. The other two are 20-25 minutes minimum.
The PC-12 was specifically designed around needs of the RFDS because if something can handle the Australian conditions it can handle anything. This same thought was used around the development of the PC-24, this is the first jet powered aircraft that can do the job. The RFDS will basically land anywhere they can, even right on the verge of becoming dangerous. There are highways with areas designated landing strips, dirt landing strips as you saw as well as any other flat surface they can. They don’t only do emergency calls, they do community health programs, transfers between major cites for critical care between treating hospitals. They also help take people home to for their last flight so to speak, particularly between Adelaide and Broken Hill. The RFDS is the one charity that helps in every corner of Australia from road to air, everyone pretty much has a soft spot for them as you never know might need them and quite frankly you wouldn’t want anyone else to do this vital job.
These people are heroes and we are very proud of them.