The Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) (Queensland Section) and the state’s aeromedical healthcare providers will soon operate under the same roof at a new Aeromedical Hub at Brisbane Airport to connect more regional, rural and remote communities to major hospitals and life-saving medical care.
The new facility is fully funded by the Queensland Government and will be home to aircraft and resources for the RFDS (Queensland Section), Retrieval Services Queensland, LifeFlight and Queensland Police Service Aviation Capability Group.
Construction of the 18,700 m² facility is now underway between Brisbane Airport’s two runways, at the Airport North Precinct to accommodate quick ariel access.
Once completed it will feature new patient transfer facilities, state-of-the-art hangars for fixed and rotary-wing aircraft, administration areas and a medical base for regional patient and donor transfers.
RFDS (Queensland Section) Chief Executive Officer Meredith Staib said turning the first sod on this facility was a momentous milestone for the organisation in enhancing patient care and response capabilities.
“The RFDS (Queensland Section) transfers around thirteen thousand patients via aeromedical services every year, many of those via our Brisbane Base,” Meredith said.
“We look forward to the opening of the brand-new patient facility in the future which will enable further important collaboration with our partners in care including LifeFlight and Queensland Health.”
“We thank the State Government and our generous supporters for helping bring to life the vision of what will become a crucial patient care facility for many years to come.”
Queensland Minister for Health and Ambulance Services Shannon Fentiman said the Queensland Government is committed to supporting world-class care for all Queenslanders, no matter where they live.
“The new Aeromedical Hub at Brisbane Airport will transform the aeromedical network, supporting the continued safe, reliable, and efficient systems to deliver timely access to healthcare, especially in rural, remote, and regional areas,” Minister Fentiman said.
“This investment follows the Queensland Government’s 10-year fully costed commercial agreements with Royal Flying Doctor Service and LifeFlight, securing the sustainable delivery of aeromedical services into the future.”
