For the Royal Flying Doctor Service in WA, transfers relating to pregnancies, birth and newborn babies are one of the most common reasons for retrieval.
One such family who needed the services of the RFDS urgently was the Crowdy family from Mandurah who were holidaying in Pemberton when mum-to-be Annalise started experiencing back pain at 35 weeks pregnant.
About to head camping off the grid the couple thought it was best to get it checked out "just in case".
Everything seemed to be ok when they first presented at Manjimup Hospital. It wasn't until the medical staff went to test the fluid she was losing that meant Annalise had to roll on her side. Her waters broke immediately, she was dilated two centimetres and experienced contractions three minutes apart.
The doctor turned to husband Scott and said "It looks like we are having a baby today!".
I think it was more stressful for Scott than me because I was just focused on trying to keep the baby in
- Annalise Crowdy
"We were off the grid on our babymoon when little Laiken decided he wanted to meet the world a few weeks early," Mr Crowdy said.
Labour moved along quickly, and the baby was identified to be in a breeched position. The safest option was to call on the RFDS to transport Annalise to King Edwards Hospital in Perth.
"When I was told I would have to fly I didn't really have too many thoughts around it I was just trying to make sure my labour didn't progress so I didn't have the baby down south or in the air," Mrs Crowdy said.
"The only thing I was worried about was that my husband wasn't able to get on the flight and had to drive up to meet me at the hospital in Perth.
"I think it was more stressful for Scott than me because I was just focused on trying to keep the baby in," she laughed.
Flight Nurse Fiona Yard and Doctor Koert Jan Schonewille kept Annalise calm during the flight and travelled in the ambulance to the hospital with her.
"From the moment I hit the runway, the medical crew onboard checked to see how far along I was and monitored me throughout the flight. They helped me breath through it all because I couldn't get any pain medication whilst on the flight," she said.
"The doctor on board grabbed my phone and was taking photos and videos of the experience for me. At the time I had no idea what was going on but after it all happened it was amazing to have those moments captured."
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Mrs Crowdy was taken straight to the labour ward where she had an emergency caesarean. Mr Crowdy raced to the hospital during the flight and arrived just after Laiken was born and was able to be by his side while Laiken was receiving respiratory monitoring care in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.
"It was such an overwhelming situation to be in but looking back now I'm actually glad how it all happened," Mrs Crowdy said.
"I'm really happy Scott was able to be with Laiken because if he had been in theatre with me we would've been in a situation where our son was going to the NICU alone. It all worked out the way it was meant to."
Laiken, who is now four months old, is a tough little baby, growing stronger each day. He embarked on his first holiday down south when he was six weeks old. The young family are looking forward to the many adventures and milestones that lay ahead with their precious baby boy.
"He was in the NICU for eight days but he's doing great now," Annalise said. "We will forever be grateful for the RFDS."
