Clinic Services
Clinic Services are regular services provided to rural and remote locations across Australia.Over 14,000 clinics are provided by RFDS in any given year.
Clinic Services are based on the principles of Primary Health Care. Primary Health Care has a broad focus, including the provision of a comprehensive range of health services by multidisciplinary teams. The teams include general practitioners, nurses, allied health professionals and other health workers such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health workers and health education/promotion and community development workers.
RFDS has a strong commitment to deliver quality primary health care services. We also aim to increase collaboration and development of partnerships with other departments and agencies, in efforts to redress differences between the health of rural and remote Australians and their metropolitan counterparts. These differences include, but are not limited to:
- poorer health status, especially for a number of key health indicators and in key disease areas
- greater exposure to a range of health risk factors
- lower socio-economic status
- higher death rates, and
- higher proportions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
RFDS nationally provides primary health care services through regular clinics conducted at a range of locations such as Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, rural support towns, remote stations, mines and oil fields, national parks and tourist resorts throughout rural and remote Australia.
Clinic services include:
- general practice
- nursing services
- child and maternal health
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health
- women’s health
- mental health
- dental services
- health promotion
- allied health, and
- medical specialists
(Note that the range of clinic services provided varies between different parts of Australia.)