RFDS celebrates 93rd anniversary on Flying Doctor Day

Western Australian landmarks across the State will light up in red and blue and the RFDS will hold its first 24-hour Giving Day on 17 May to mark the anniversary and encourage Western Australians (WA) to support the service, which provides 24/7 emergency healthcare to anyone living, working or travelling in regional WA. A street appeal will also be held in Perth on 14 May.

CEO Rebecca Tomkinson said every Western Australian can be proud of the work done by the RFDS on a daily basis: “The Royal Flying Doctor Service represents the quintessential sense of what it means to be Western Australian – that a mate will always be there to help when you need them most.

“We are busier than ever, retrieving around 26 patients per day from every corner of the State, which is about 10 per cent more than average. In the last year we have flown 8,000,000 kilometres. The RFDS is incredibly fortunate to have so many supporters in WA and we encourage everyone to show their support for Flying Doctor Day in May.”

Matched Giving Partners double every dollar

Matched Giving Partners Rio Tinto, IGO and CBH Group are generously supporting the Flying Doctor Day campaign by doubling every dollar donated by the WA community until 17 May. This means donations to the campaign will be doubled, dollar for dollar, up to a total of AD$250,000.

Rio Tinto Iron Ore Chief Executive Simon Trott said: “Rio Tinto is proud to support the RFDS in its ongoing efforts to deliver essential healthcare and emergency services to remote and rural areas.

“The RFDS does an incredible job in assisting the community and to celebrate 93 years of RFDS service, Rio Tinto is delighted to match public donations and triple-match ‘RioGivers’ employee donations during the Flying Doctor Day Appeal.”

Recently, the service announced that two helicopters will join the fleet, which gives the organization and its crews greater flexibility and capability to respond to inter-hospital patient transfer requirements.