Northern Territory intervention A "third-world" health catastrophe

In mid-April, Northern Territory newspapers reported on an inquest into the death, almost two years ago, of Julama Limbunya, a 78-year-old Aboriginal man.

On August 21, 2006, Limbunya was flown home to Kalkaringi-Wave Hill, a small Aboriginal community about 750 kilometres south west of Darwin, after receiving treatment for pneumonia at Katherine hospital.

Although Limbunya had recovered from his illness, he was blind, could not walk unaided, spoke little English and had early signs of dementia. Nevertheless, the elderly man was provided with no escort on the specially chartered flight, nor were his relatives or the local community told when he would be arriving.

While guidelines for transporting remote patients to Darwin or Katherine stipulate that anyone frail, aged or chronically ill must be escorted on medical evacuation flights, permission must first be obtained by the outlying clinic from a District Medical Officer (DMO) in Darwin.