Steere M1, Telford T, Eng F, Ginsburg J
1RFDS SA/NT, 2Charles Darwin University
Biography:
Dr Felicia Eng is an Account Technical Leader at IBM for Victorian healthcare where she helps organisations across the state harness industry-leading technologies to improve patient outcomes and drive meaningful innovation. Last year she led a project with the RFDS where the team implemented AI image and audio processing to automate manual data collection by flight clinicians during aeromedical emergencies. The project demonstrated that clinicians could reduce their manual admin time from 28 minutes to 2 minutes for every 2-hour flight.
Felicia also sits on the Board of St. Hilda’s College at the University of Melbourne where she helps drive positive cultural and academic outcomes for students by giving them a community where they can thrive and grow. Felicia has a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) and Bachelor of Science, majoring in Economics and Computer Science. She obtained her Ph.D. in Mathematics, where her research focused on the role of information and communication during natural disaster evacuation.
Abstract
Generative AI in the prehospital environment has had limited exploration given environmental and connectivity constraints. RFDS and IBM have co-developed and validated the use of agentic AI in the aeromedical back of cabin environment, including accurate voice to text with significant ambient noise, image to text to automate vital sign, medication and blood administration documentation, as well as approaches to overcoming connectivity barriers through edge technology. This presentation will demonstrate with video footage the significant barriers to prehospital AI success, and achievements in overcoming them.
DISTANCE, DECISIONS, AND DELIVERY: HIGH-RISK OBSTETRIC RETRIEVAL IN THE TOP END
Mackney S1
1CareFlight
Biography:
Dr Sarah Mackney, is the Deputy Medical Director of CareFlight Northern Territory and an Emergency Physician at Royal Darwin Hospital. She relocated to Darwin in 2013, where she lives with her husband and three children. She has developed a broad clinical practice spanning emergency medicine, pre-hospital care, and critical care retrieval.
Working across both CareFlight and Royal Darwin Hospital, she has extensive experience delivering healthcare in geographically isolated and resource-limited settings. Dr Mackney provides clinical leadership in aeromedical operations and contributes to clinical governance and service development, with a focus on improving outcomes for remote and First Nations communities.
Abstract
Aim:
To describe the complexity of obstetric aeromedical retrieval in the remote Top End of Northern Australia and highlight the challenges of managing time-critical maternal emergencies in geographically isolated settings.
Methods:
A retrospective review of obstetric retrievals undertaken by CareFlight NT during 2025 was performed. Retrieval activity data were analysed to characterise workload and indications for transfer. Three representative cases were examined: a patient presenting in labour with severe hypertension and unknown gestation at a remote clinic, and two cases of catastrophic postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) requiring urgent aeromedical response from a regional hospital.
Results:
In 2025, CareFlight NT conducted 385 obstetric retrievals, including 150 cases of preterm labour, and was involved in 25 births occurring prior to team arrival. Communities across the Top End include large Aboriginal populations with higher rates of preterm birth and pregnancy-related complications. Long distances and limited access to specialist maternity and neonatal services frequently necessitate urgent aeromedical transfer. The cases demonstrated the complexity of balancing maternal and foetal risk, managing severe maternal illness in resource-limited environments, and coordinating culturally safe care across geographically distant teams. The PPH cases required aggressive resuscitation, blood product administration, emergency surgical intervention, and retrieval support to facilitate transfer for definitive obstetric, surgical, and intensive care management.
Conclusions:
Obstetric emergencies represent a significant component of aeromedical retrieval workload in the Top End. Safe outcomes rely on early recognition, timely escalation, structured risk assessment, and effective collaboration between remote clinicians, retrieval services, and tertiary obstetric teams. These experiences highlight the critical role of aeromedical retrieval in supporting remote maternity care and may inform preparedness, training, and clinical pathways for severe obstetric emergencies in remote Australia.