CARING IN THE CLOUDS!

Royal Flying Doctor nurse Susan loves looking after her patients in the skies

- Brigid Auchettl

When Susan Markwell jokes her office has the “best view going”, she means it! The 62-year-old recently celebrated three decades as a flight nurse with the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), treating sick and injured Australians across remote and rural Queensland.

From delivering babies mid-flight to treating crocodile bites, Susan loves that – even after 30 years – no day is the same.

“Delivering a baby in the air, that was just fantastic but it’s not something we usually do,” Susan tells Woman’s Day from her home in Cairns, Queensland. “We had to clean the plane for two hours afterwards!

“You just don’t know what’s going to happen on shift, it’s quite exciting.”