Royal Flying Doctor Service International Women’s Day Sunset Reception 2023

Thank you Ms Meredith Staib, Royal Flying Doctor Service Queensland Section CEO, for that wonderful introduction to this event celebrating the achievements of women in your organisation.

Royal Flying Doctor Service Queensland Section Chair, Mr Russell Postle; Deputy Chair, Ms Georgie Somerset and Members of the Board; distinguished guests; ladies and gentlemen.

I, too, would like to acknowledge the original custodians of the lands around Brisbane—the Turrbal and Jagera people— and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and to all First Nations people here this evening.

As Governor of Queensland and Joint Patron with my husband, Graeme, of the Royal Flying Doctor Service, Queensland Section, it is an honour to be attending this event to celebrate the remarkable women making life-saving differences as part of your incredible organisation.

And as Ms Staib has pointed out, this is an organisation very well represented by women, in all roles, from pilots to medical specialists to mental health professionals and Board Members.

If our goal is a gender-equal future, it would appear you have indeed cracked the code.

Looking around this room, it’s not hard to see why.

The presence here of the RFDS Queensland Board and top executives at an event to celebrate International Women’s Day speaks volumes.

Representative leadership is crucial to success, and Ms Staib exemplifies this, having overseen the recent launch of your strategy to guide the RFDS to 100 years of service in 2028.

In developing this strategy - in your words, a roadmap to achieve your vision of better health access and outcomes for people in the bush - you visited bases right around the State, gathering the thoughts and ideas of your frontline workforce.

No doubt a sizeable portion were women working in bases and clinics across Queensland, with a focus on providing healthcare and aeromedical services to rural and remote communities.

The strategy itself is a study in diversity, framed by Indigenous artwork evoking ancient navigation practices and connections to Country.

But it is also future-focused, outlining a bold five-year growth strategy that will bring regional and rural communities under the wing, as it were, of our State’s world-class healthcare system.

And all with equity, culture and diversity as encompassing ideals, along with patients, families and community, safety and sustainability and partnerships and collaboration.

It’s an impressive document, and one I know will guide your exceptional workforce to achieve their lofty potential.

May it also help you, as leaders of an organisation that is already setting standards in the area of gender equity, to continue to ensure women are front and centre of decision-making.

As your CEO so eloquently described, women are often those who need your service most, and who better to fully understand the female experience, especially when your life depends on it.

And surely, ensuring the health and safety of women in rural and remote areas often means you are ensuring the health and wellbeing of the next generation of Queenslanders as well.

As Governor, as a former medical professional, and as a woman, I commend you and thank you for all that you do for Queensland.

I would now like to take this opportunity to present your CEO, Ms Meredith Staib with a certificate of Vice-Regal Patronage.

Happy International Women’s Day!