Di Fuller 

Nurse Specialist - Transports, Starship Child Health, Auckland, NZ

Di’s first retrieval was in the days of National Woman’s Hospital neonatal intensive care unit, 11A.  This was around 1986 – 1987.  From there it was to doing retrievals based out of what was then Starship Children’s Hospital – this was in the time of Childflight. 

After a period of time overseas on return to NZ in 2001 and following the amalgamation of the Greenlane ICU paediatric cardiac services with the general paediatric ICU at Starship, Di commenced work on the retrieval team based out of the PICU at Starship Children’s Hospital.  During this time she completed her post-graduate diploma in aeromedical retrievals through Otago University.

Di has been a committee member of the NZ Flight Nurses Association – now College of Air & Surface Transport Nurses (COASTN).  During this time she took on the role of organising and facilitating the NZFNA National Aeromedical Retrieval Course for Flight Nurses.  Di has continue in this role for COASTN. She was re-elected back onto the COASTN committee in 2017 & is now also facilitating the sub-committee for raising the professional profile of flight nurses in NZ. 

Di has been a committee member of the Aeromedical Society of Australasia for approx. the last 6 years taking on the role of secretary this year.

2017 also saw her and some of her colleagues assisting with training for aeromedical evacuation with the NZ Airforce.

In October 2017 Di commenced the role of Nurse Specialist – transports overseeing the paediatric intensive care retrieval service at Starship Children’s Health.  She retains clinical hours doing retrievals as well as clinical nursing on the PICU.