Overcoming barriers in access to medical services is the most important consideration of health consumers in country Australia, a Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) research report on health needs of rural and remote residents has found. The RFDS survey of 450 country people drawn from every state and territory saw one-third of responses (32.5 per cent) name doctor and medical specialist access as their key priority. Addressing mental health (12.2pc) and drug and alcohol problems (4.1pc) were second and third priorities. When asked where additional health expenditure should be targeted, 32.2pc of responses said more funding was needed to expand access to medical services in country areas. 14.6pc called for more funding of mental health programs, and health prevention and promotion was identified by 8.6pc as the third priority for more funding. Positively, more than two-thirds of responses (68.7pc) said they travelled less than an hour to see a doctor for a non-emergency, with the remaining responses travelling anywhere from one to five hours. Four percent of responses travelled for more than five hours to see a doctor. More than half (58.3pc) of respondents saw a doctor within four hours for urgent medical care, with the remaining seeing a doctor anywhere from the same day to six or more days later. RFDS CEO Martin Laverty said the survey had given country health consumers a voice in the rural health debate. “The research findings a pretty stark,” he said.  “Country people have said they are missing out on seeing medical specialists. They miss out on some pathology and diagnostic tests. They want more attention on health prevention to halt illness before it starts. “The survey findings endorse decisions of successive governments who’ve invested in rural health, but the survey demands more be done. A rural health strategy for better access to doctors and medical specialists, supported by more health prevention, is needed.” The RFDS survey was conducted in partnership with the National Farmers Federation, and with the support of the Country Women’s Association. The research paper “Health Care Access, Mental Health, and Preventative Health; Health Priority Survey Findings for People in the Bush”  and many media resources are available at https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/New-Research-Paper/