Independent analysis shows the Royal Flying Doctor Service WA will deliver $4.1 billion in social value to Western Australians over the next 30 years, providing a two-to-one return on every dollar invested in operating the service.
A new independent report by Deloitte Access Economics (DAE) has found that The Royal Flying Doctor Service in WA is delivering twice the value of the funding invested in its operations, amid record demand for its services.
The report found that the RFDS was critical to providing essential health care for more than 20,000 people living and working in regional Western Australia each year. The RFDS responded to its largest ever number of patient retrievals in 2025, amounting to an average of 29 calls for assistance per day (10,578 for the year).
The RFDS is expected to deliver a social dividend to the State valued at $4.1 billion over the next 30 years. Approximately half this value will be generated by its flagship aeromedical service, which provides a lifeline for Western Australians living and working outside of Perth across the world’s largest landmass under a single health jurisdiction.
Other contributors include RFDS remote health clinics, telehealth, medical chests, and community and industry outreach services. A significant portion of the value was attributed to the organisation’s ‘existence value’, representing the reassurance the RFDS provides to people should they need to call on the service, and the value Western Australians place on compassion and fairness for regional residents, now and for future generations.
By combining life-saving aeromedical retrievals, remote clinics and telehealth, commercial operations and broad community support, the RFDS improves health outcomes, supports regional economies and gives households confidence that access to health care is available when they need it.
People in remote WA, where reliance on RFDS services is greatest, were found to derive more than $17,000 per household in value. The average value per household across the State was $3,450. The RFDS aeromedical service provides $130 million in value to workers in WA’s resource sector and $570 million to Aboriginal people.
The RFDS was also found to provide significant value to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in WA with a social value of just over $6,900 per person.
"The RFDS has strong support from government and the community, and I am very pleased to be able to demonstrate the return on that investment to our funders and the communities we serve. We are just one part of a bigger ecosystem that does a fantastic job of caring for patients across the sometimes challenging and often complex conditions of regional and remote WA."
RFDS WA CEO, Judith Barker ASM