The Flying Doctor—Saving Lives in the Outback
By Awake! correspondent in Australia
IT happened over 80 years ago, in the early 1900’s. Jimmy, a young stockman, was mustering cattle near Hall’s Creek in the far north of Western Australia. Suddenly, his horse stopped short. Jimmy was thrown to the ground and was seriously injured.
A slow trip in a buggy took the badly injured lad to Hall’s Creek, where the postmaster also served as a “bush doctor.” But his only credentials were that he had attended a series of first-aid lectures before leaving Perth some years earlier. The nearest trained medical doctor was hundreds of miles away.
The postmaster tapped out an urgent message by telegraph, only to learn that the doctor had been called away and might not be back for several days. In desperation, the postmaster then telegraphed the doctor who had been his first-aid instructor in Perth—more than 2,000 miles [3,200 km] away. Over the telegraph line, the doctor gave step-by-step instructions. With great trepidation, the postmaster managed to carry out a primitive operation on the injured stockman, using a sharp knife and a razor.
The doctor immediately set out from Perth on the long trip to Hall’s Creek. It took him 12 1/2 days to reach this isolated country town, traveling first by cattle boat up the West Australian coast, then over rough tracks by car, and finally by horse and sulky. The doctor dragged himself into the post office, exhausted. His first words were: “How’s the patient?”
“He died yesterday,” the postmaster said sadly.
This kind of heartbreaking experience caused many thoughtful people to begin grappling with outback Australia’s greatest challenge—distance! How could people who needed urgent medical help be reached quickly during emergencies?
Conquering Distance
At the turn of the century, the hardship faced by people in the isolated outback areas was appalling. There were only two doctors for an area of 695,000 square miles [1,800,000 sq km], an area roughly equal to three times the size of France! However, some began to envision a time when there would be a health network covering the entire outback area. How so? By using a combination of airplanes, radios, and medicine. As one man pointedly said: “The alternatives are an aeroplane or a grave.”
Back then, aviation was virtually untried and of questionable safety, and radio was in its infancy. As the years passed, however, air travel became more realistic and wireless made rapid progress. But another hurdle loomed: how to get power to operate a two-way radio in the outback. This paved the way for the invention of . . .
The Ingenious Pedal Wireless
In the late 1920’s, a young radio engineer devised the idea of using a person on bicycle-type pedals to power a generator. The generator required no batteries, was manufactured at a reasonable cost, and made radio transmission possible over a range of 300 miles [480 km]. The pedal wireless was used extensively in the outback for many years.
At first, spoken messages could not be sent or received. Telegraphic Morse code—with its dots and dashes—had to be used. The difficulty of sending messages by those unfamiliar with Morse code was overcome by the ingenious invention of a special keyboard using a typewriter connected to the wireless transmitter. “Bush” typists were able to punch out messages with one finger. For example, striking the “A” key resulted in the Morse signal “dit-dah” being sent, and so forth. In later years, a telephone-type arrangement was used, making the use of Morse code unnecessary.
Eventually, the pedal wireless was replaced with more up-to-date equipment, and what is known as the single sideband mode of radio transmission was introduced. A number of bases were modernized with this equipment. Today, more than 2,600 outstation transceivers communicate with these bases regularly.
The Flying Doctor Becomes a Reality
In May 1928 the Aerial Medical Service got under way. The first aircraft used could carry a pilot, a doctor, either a nurse or a sitting patient, and a stretcher. The single-engined de Havilland DH-50A biplane had a cruising speed of only 80 miles [130 km] per hour, but it was a start, and it certainly beat horse and buggy! In 1941 the name was changed to the Flying Doctor Service. Then in 1955 the official name became the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
Financial problems were present from the start, especially during the worldwide economic depression of the early 1930’s. Gradually, however, federal and state government subsidies were obtained on a regular basis, along with money received from trusts and public appeals. To this day, the Flying Doctor Service depends largely on donations from business firms and individuals, for although outback patients are expected to contribute for visits and treatment, the amounts they can give are little more than token payment for the expenses incurred.
Some Early Hazards
Today, modern aircraft and equipment have made flying so much easier and safer, but in the early days pilots risked their lives to land at remote outback locations. Many landing strips were rough and not long enough for safe landings and takeoffs. Often, the pilot had to come in low and circle the landing strip to frighten off horses, kangaroos, cattle, sheep, and even emus before touching down. When night landings were necessary, crude homemade flares had to be lighted. Later, as cars and trucks became more plentiful, headlights were used to light up the “runways.”
In those early days, navigation was sometimes a challenge. Because of unreliable maps, or none at all, pilots often had to recognize landmarks from the air—perhaps a clump of timber, a boundary fence, a dirt road, a water hole, or a river.
No More Than Two Hours Away
As the years passed, the Flying Doctor Service grew until today there are 13 bases throughout the scattered outback areas of Australia, as well as one in Tasmania. (See map.) At each base there is always one flying doctor on hand, and some of the larger bases may have three or more. There is always one pilot present, and some bases have up to three pilots on call. Nurses are usually available from local hospitals near the bases.
There is now a fleet of 32 aircraft that averages 6,500 flights a year and carries upwards of 9,000 patients to hospitals annually. In addition, some 90,000 patients consult with the flying doctor and are treated by him. This thorough coverage of the outback means that the flying doctor can reach any patient in Australia within two hours.
Even Dental and Heart Care
Nowadays, even the teeth of those living in the sparsely settled Australian outback can be given regular checkups and skillful attention. Dental work is not done by the flying doctor himself but by dentists who travel regularly in flying-doctor planes. Each year between 5,000 and 6,000 patients receive treatment from the visiting dentists.
What about heart care? The magazine Australasian Post tells the intriguing story of an elderly woman in the tiny New South Wales town of Tibooburra (population 150). She had her heartbeat checked by radio. The nearest flying-doctor base was at Broken Hill, 210 miles [340 km] away. When chest pains developed and would not go away, the patient was attached to an electronic device that transmitted electrical signals from her heart to the Broken Hill Base Hospital, so that treatment could be prescribed.
A Unique Service
As for area covered and availability, the Australian Flying Doctor Service is indeed unique. But some other countries have similar arrangements to care for those living in sparsely settled areas. For example, Canada has efficient air ambulance services. Among these is the Saskatchewan Air Ambulance Service inaugurated in 1947. East Africa began to enjoy the benefits of a joint British and American enterprise in 1961.
However, for its extensive coverage of over two thirds of this vast land area of almost 3,000,000 square miles [7,770,000 sq km], the Australian Flying Doctor Service stands out. As yet, there is no parallel in any other part of the world.
It is not surprising, then, that the official brochure of the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia concludes by saying: “The Flying Doctor Service makes available, regardless of creed, colour or race, a unique humanitarian service that was without precedent when it started more than 50 years ago, and today still has no equal in the world.”
[Map on page 18]
The 14 bases of the Flying Doctor Service in the scattered outback of Australia and Tasmania (For fully formatted text, see publication)
Mt. Isa
Charters Towers
Charleville
Broken Hill
Pt. Augusta
Ceduna
Kalgoorlie
Meekatharra
Carnarvon
Alice Springs
Pt. Hedland
Derby
Wyndham
Hobart
[Picture on page 17]
The type of plane used in the early days of the Flying Doctor