Communities in Far North Queensland and staff from the RFDS (Queensland Section) Cairns Base have united to rebuild from ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper.
When disaster strikes, communities band together.
This is certainly the case for residents in the Cairns and Cooktown regions who were devastated by ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper in December and are now, almost five months later, working together to reconnect with their families, pets, homes and businesses.
While the road to recovery has been long, many have been praised for their heroic efforts and generous acts of kindness to help those impacted by the floods get back on their feet.
RFDS State Manager Base Support Services Justin Reeves said despite the RFDS Cairns Base and hangar being damaged by the floods, it never dampened the team’s spirit.
“Operational staff from the base were quickly relocated to portable offices in the base car park and administration staff to temporary offices near the domestic terminal,” Justin said.
“It has been a mammoth effort by the team to relocate so that we can continue to provide our vital healthcare services.
“These events can easily break a team, but in this case, it has truly brought us closer together and made our bond with the community even stronger.”
To assist those affected by the floods, the team extended their mental health and telehealth services in Far North Queensland to provide extra consultations to those needing urgent medical care.
RFDS Manager – Far North Mental Health Jos Middleton said the team of mental health clinicians had provided 47 group consultations to help those impacted by the floods focusing on psychological first aid.
“There is great resilience in the Cape, but also, there are many families that have lost everything and are struggling daily.
“We started with a focus on providing psychological first aid, but as time went on, we are now seeing an increase in referrals directly linked to the ongoing impact of the natural disaster.”
RFDS Senior Mental Health Clinicians Stephen White and Jess Brotherhood has been providing mental health services in Cooktown, Rossville and Ayton and said while there has been progress, there’s still a lot of work to be done.
“The team have been doing face-to-face and drop-in sessions on the ground as people request them,” Jess said.
“We have also been reaching out to local businesses and schools to offer our services.
“There’s so much resilience here, particularly from the Wujal Wujal community, who have been out of home for nearly five months.”
RFDS Medical Lead – Telehealth Dr Meg O’Connell said the RFDS bridged the gap for people who were isolated in locations away from their homes and from their regular medications or health services.
“The RFDS was able to assist by providing urgent healthcare to patients who were going through the worst time of their lives,” Meg said.
“We have been helping people requesting advice on rashes and skin infections from being in flood waters.
“Telehealth was there to fill the gap until regular healthcare services could return to their normal operating schedule.
“We were very happy to be able to provide our telehealth services during this tough time.”
To thank the community for their continued support and to celebrate their resilience, the RFDS (Queensland Section) will be hosting the RFDS Cairns Ball on Saturday 8 June 2024.
The ball will raise vital funds to support the ongoing delivery of services to the Far North Queensland communities who continue to navigate their way on the road to recovery.
RFDS Cairns Ball 2024
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