CareFlight is renowned for its aeromedical missions that provide lifesaving healthcare to communities across Australia. Its Rapid Response Service, which launched in 2005, has one specific purpose – to take hospital-level critical care to seriously injured patients as quickly as possible.

Twice a year, CareFlight welcomes two registrars to its Rapid Response crew and, this year, as the service marks 20 years, the aeromedical charity is taking the opportunity to recognise the impact the new doctors will have over the next six-months.

Competition for CareFlight’s registrar positions is extremely high, reflecting the strong reputation the aeromedical charity has built for the highest of standards in clinical care, education, and experience which can be gained.

Sam Bendall, Director of Education and Retrieval Specialist shared, “We teach the registrars who join our program how to take the skills they’ve carefully honed over the last six to seven years in a hospital and apply them into the pre-hospital and retrieval medicine setting, which is incredibly different.

“Our goal is to prepare them to such a level that they don’t encounter a mission without first experiencing something similar in simulation. We need them to be ready to provide lifesaving care as soon as they arrive at the incident to give patients the best chance of survival and recovery.”

The registrars joining the CareFlight Rapid Response crew have the chance to work on one of the world’s most advanced aeromedical aircraft, the H145. Equipped with the most up-to-date medical equipment, it is capable of being airborne within three minutes of activation.

Speed of response plays an essential role in the pre-hospital environment ensuring the very best patient outcomes. Getting a specialist clinical team as fast and as close to the patient as possible to commence treatment, saves lives. Fortunately, the H145 is compact and can therefore land in tight spaces ensuring clinical intervention can begin as soon as the team arrive on scene with the patient.

CareFlight Retrieval Registrar, Rahul Gokarn shared, “I feel incredibly privileged to be joining the CareFlight Rapid Response crew, working alongside such an experienced and dedicated team. It’s particularly special to be starting in the 20th year of this service, which has already built such an extraordinary legacy as a model for pre-hospital care. I’m honoured to contribute to its next chapter and to help push the boundaries of what’s possible in retrieval medicine.”

By continuing to attract and retain dedicated doctors, CareFlight is ensuring that patients in urban, rural and even the most remote communities have access to hospital-level critical care when they need it most.

For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact media@careflight.org

About CareFlight

CareFlight was founded in 1986 as an aeromedical charity with the mission to save lives, speed recovery and serve the community.

Today, we deliver services nationally. Our critical care doctors, paramedics and nurses are specially trained in emergency and trauma, pre-hospital and remote medicine and we use helicopters, jet aircraft, turbo-prop planes and road vehicles to reach and treat patients wherever they are.

We provide advanced trauma treatment and critical medical care to seriously ill and injured patients as quickly as possible to give them the greatest chance of recovery so they can resume their lives.

We run accredited training for clinical specialists; operate extensive aviation and logistic training for our employees and other organisations; run a range of free education and training programs in regional, rural and remote areas, and we partner with emergency service organisations, defence forces, local community members and businesses to deliver our expertise.