The Royal Flying Doctor Service wants to use drones to improve rural health care. It believes they could carry things like snake anti-venom, or even transport patients eventually.

Hannah Donnelly reports.

TRANSCRIPT

The Royal Flying Doctor Service is holding a think tank.

They’re keen for cutting edge companies to develop ways to improve outback health services.

Trent Dean, Royal Flying Doctor Service: “There’s a range of things possible, medication delivery, pathology results being sent back in live time and could be also be mapping of air strips giving better view when our pilots come to land.”

But first the Service needs to know just how practical the idea will be.

Trent Dean, Royal Flying Doctor Service: “With any new technologies there’s always inherent risks about what the costs are going to be, what the regulatory burdens are, what’s the the adoption going to be like at the front line.”

Despite the risks, Queensland’s top drone experts are confident they can pull it off.

Dr Catherine Ball, World of Drones Education: “We are number one in the world in terms of being able to fly drones longer than anyone else. It’s been 17 years we’ve been doing it.”

The Royal Flying Doctor Service specifically sort expertise within Qld for the job.

The think tank is the first of its kind in Australia, upholding Queensland’s reputation as leaders in drove innovation.

Ideas they’re talking about today could be a reality in less than six months. It seems the sky’s the limit.

Hannah Donnelly QUT News.