This October, Dr Dean Taylor, Medical Education Lead - Aeromedical, celebrates 25 years of service with the Royal Flying Doctor Service (Queensland Section) (RFDS).
For Dean, the choice between becoming a doctor or a pilot was a tough decision.
“It was a close call between doctor and pilot for a while, although I’m glad medicine won in the end,” he said.
“I’m very lucky as I’ve managed to find a niche that lets me do medicine whilst still being in the air.”
That passion for both aviation and medicine has shaped a career with the RFDS that he wouldn’t trade for anything else.
One of the highlights of his role is the variety it brings. After holding the position of Director of Medical Services for almost five years, Dean decided to step down into more hands-on clinical work, which he had missed.
“One of the best things about my role is that there is no typical day,” he said.
“I might be flying out to run a clinic, resuscitating the critically ill or injured, or orienting new retrieval doctors.”
After 25 years, it’s no surprise that Dean has had countless unforgettable experiences, from primary responses, flare landings, de-bogging aircraft and meeting Queen Elizabeth II.
“Primary retrievals are probably the most memorable,” he said.
“The resilience of remote Australians and our staff continues to impress and amaze me.”
Over the years, he’s seen the service evolve in several ways. From paper records and satellite phone calls scribbled on notepads to today’s dedicated Telehealth team and fully electronic systems, the improvements have been vast.
But at its heart, the RFDS remains about people helping people, and that’s exactly what has kept Dean with the RFDS for so long.
“It’s the purpose, the patients, and the people we work with that make this job so rewarding,” he said.
Want to know more about what it takes to be an RFDS Medical Officer? Find out more information here.
