Everyone knows the familiar thrum of the Snowy Hydro Southcare helicopter, but Canberrans might be surprised to learn a growing portion of the aeromedical rescue service's work is not in the air.
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While the chopper lifted off 457 times last financial year, its team also carried out more than 350 jobs on the ground, new figures have revealed.
That includes 88 road missions and 264 medical consultations.
Capital Region Retrieval Service clinical director and Snowy Hydro SouthCare doctor Kelvin Grove said the service's on-duty flight doctor could spend up to four hours on the phone providing critical care advice and transport assessment to staff in regional hospitals.
"More recently for a number of the smaller hospitals predominantly in southern NSW, we've been able to develop some tele-medicine links so not only can we talk to them, we can actually see them and see their patients and provide some tailored advice on medicine," Dr Grove said.
"Some of the time that leads them to not be needing to be transferred, but in the interim it may also give an opportunity to enhance their care prior to us being able to get there."
The number of missions the aeromedical rescue service carried out fell 10 per cent from the previous financial year.
The service flew to the scene of 200 accidents, conducted four search and rescue missions and transferred 253 people from regional hospitals to specialist medical care.
More than a third of the missions the rescue helicopter undertook last financial year were down the south coast, from Ulladulla to Eden.
One in five chopper flights were to regional towns to the north of Canberra, including Goulburn, Young, Yass, Harden and Boorowa.
Dr Grove said the ability to "triage" patients via telelink meant patients around NSW were able to get the benefit of care from Canberra without the chopper ride to the capital.
"It costs about $10,000 a mission or thereabouts so it's pretty expensive and absolute value for money for the patients who need to come, but if we can filter some of those a little bit and improve the care they receive prior to us getting there then it's always going to be a bonus."
