John Flynn of the Inland: How mission was used in establishing the Royal Flying Doctor Service

John Flynn, the father of the Australian Royal Flying doctor service was born in 1881. John had his heart set on becoming a minister from a young age, and in his early twenties he became a lay preacher working in the Australian bush (Ref.1). In 1903, he began his training as a Presbyterian Church minister, and he graduated in 1910. After previous experience working at church home missionary centres and preaching in the bush, Flynn’s desire to work with the people living in the Australian outback grew. He gathered with some other preachers and began mission work in rural southern Australia.(Ref.3)

Flynn was asked to write a report on how the Presbyterian Church could help those people living out in the bush. “ He had a deep practical concern about the needs of bush people, and the graves in the inland of people who should never have died worried him (Ref.1)”. After he had written this report in 1912, he was given the position of the first superintendent of he newly founded Australian inland mission (Ref2). “The mission’s aim was to bring church services and medical care to the people of outback Australia (Ref.4)”. Flynn recognised the need to bring medical care into the outback of Australia.

Flynn came prepared to these remote areas bringing with him tools and practical items for those he ministered to. These people were hundreds of thousands of miles away from anything, especially any form of medical care. The sight of the crudely marked bush graves that he often came across in his travels (Ref.1) disturbed him. Flynn realised that he could not simply go and minister the word to these people, he also had to help fulfil their physical needs. As James 2:14-15 says, “If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and be filled’ and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?”. “Flynn began establishing bush hospitals and hostels in remote outback areas which alleviated much of the dread associated with the great loneliness of the inland. But while they provided an important service, they were really only scratching at the surface of the problem for caring for people in the outback (Ref.2)”. Flynn also knew that the distances people had to travel in order to see a surgeon or doctor for basic medical treatment was often what ended up killing the patient, rather than the initial problem itself. He knew that if the injuries or illnesses of these people were caught in their early stages, many lives would be saved.

On November 17 1917, Flynn received a letter from Lieutenant Clifford Peel, a medical student interested in aviation (Ref.2). He wrote to Flynn saying, “Aeroplanes would overcome many of the transport problems of the inland”. In particular he saw, “A missionary doctor administering to the needs of men and women. Peel outlined the costs of adopting aircraft got the Australian Inland Mission’s work, the speed and distances the early planes flew, and the support facilities needed (Ref.2)”. By 1928 the Australian Inland Mission had raised enough funds to establish the Aerial Medical Service (Ref.2). On May 15, 1928, the Aerial Medical Service began a trial year based at Cloncurry in Queensland (Ref.2). Q.A.N.T.A.S. provided the Australian Inland Mission with a pilot and aircraft (Ref.2). Every family living in the outback was encouraged to own a wireless pedal radio, which was networked to the Aerial Medical Service. “In the first year of that great experiment, fifty flights were made, eighteen thousand miles were flown, two hundred-twenty five patients were treated for various illnesses and injuries, and at least four lives were saved…In 1934 the Presbyterian Church handed the Aerial Medical Service over to a new organization, known as the Australian Aerial Medical Service (Ref.2)”. The Service grew with new establishments being made over the whole of Australia. Government support was also given, a very small amount at first, but this became more regular over time. In 1955 the Australian Aerial Medical Service was renamed the Royal Flying Doctor Service. This service continues to operate today.

John Flynn is known as ‘Flynn of the Inland’, as he set about helping the people living in the outback in both a spiritual and a practical way.

history.htm)

References

(1) ABC Radio 2002 John Flynn available Http://www.abc.net.au/btn/australians/flynn.htm accessed

(2) The royal flying doctor service 2001 John Flynn available http://www.rfds.org.au/history.htm accessed

(3) Anonymous 2001 John Flynn available http://teachit.acreekps.vic.edu.au/cyberfair2001/johnflynn.htm accessed

(4) Curriculum Corporation 2002 Biographies; John Flynn http://www.curriculum.edu.au/democracy/biographies/flynn.htm accessed May

Image of John Flynn from http://teachit.acreekps.vic.edu.au/cyberfair2001/johnflynn.htm

Image of Royal Flying Doctor aircraft from available http://www.rfds.org.au/history.htm

This page was created for a Year 12 study of religion multi-modal assignment.