Activ8me Celebrates Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia Partnership
For most Australians, waiting for a doctor involves stern-faced receptionists, stuffy waiting rooms and dated magazines.
But for one third of our population, waiting for a doctor involves listening for that distant comforting hum, and a hand shading eyes to look up at the skies for a spec on the horizon that is the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia (RFDS) aircraft.
The RFDS is one of the largest and most comprehensive aeromedical organisations in the world and a registered Australian not-for-profit. Their fleet of 71 specially-equipped aircraft provides 24-hour emergency medical care to people over an area of 7.69 million square kilometres, and their professionals conduct more than 40 primary healthcare clinics in remote locations across Australia every day.
Needless to say, the Royal Flying Doctor Service is an integral part of Australia’s healthcare landscape. Without them, many Australians living in rural, regional and remote locations would be would be without access to reliable healthcare.
Activ8 the Night – Connectivity in Collarenebri
Travelling to isolated towns with little phone and internet connectivity is just one of the many challenges the RFDS face in their day-to-day operation. ‘Black spots’ are spaces where there is no connectivity at all, meaning RFDS professionals are cut off from outside communication completely.
Collarenebri airstrip, in Walgett Shire, northern New South Wales, was one such ‘black spot’.
The small farming community of Collarenebri relies on the RFDS for emergency and primary healthcare. Which is why, to celebrate our new technology partnership, a team of Activ8me staff and technicians headed by Activ8me CEO Martin Camilleri travelled to the ‘back spot’ airstrip to install a custom-built, state-of-the-art communications ground station for RFDS professionals to use.
Where previously RFDS professionals would be completely cut off from the outside world, they now have access to solar-powered telephone and WiFi internet, enabling them to keep in constant communication with other RFDS professionals across Australia.
In the coming months Activ8me has plans to upgrade this ground station with weather station and location camera capabilities to inform pilots about weather conditions on the ground and save them valuable time.
The Royal Flying Doctor Service has been taking ‘the finest care to the furthest corners’ of Australia for more than 90 years. Activ8me is incredibly proud to be partnering with such an iconic charitable organisation, and a fellow champion of rural, regional and remote Australia.
Activ8me will continue to support the RFDS to tackle complex communications challenges through the provision of innovative technological solutions.
Keep up to date with the latest Activ8me/RFDS partnership news via our Facebook and Instagram pages and head to our Plans Page to find the right Sky Muster satellite broadband plan for you.
Activ8me and the Royal Flying Doctor Service – Better Together, Together for the Best