Ambulances, a hard-find in Punjab

Public left at mercy of private vehicles operating as quasi-ambulances that charge an arm and a leg

LAHORE:

When Muhammad Shahid’s father was injured a few days ago, after falling form the roof of their house in the village, local doctors told him to immediately take the patient to Lahore for critical care. However, despite leaving no stone unturned in his efforts, the distressed son could not find a single ambulance fit enough to carry his father to the city.

The reason for this, is the acute shortage of ambulances for emergency and medical use in Punjab, which happens to be the country’s largest province. The law dictates that in order for a vehicle to operate as an ambulance, it has to be registered with the Punjab Emergency Services Department. Although, a total of 4,719 private and government vehicles are currently registered as ambulances in the department’s records, only a few of them are still on the roads. Owing to which, the gap is filled by private vehicles being used in the province as ambulances without any legal permission.

While the owners of these quasi-ambulances have been allegedly charging exorbitant fares for transporting patients and dead bodies, that too without any formal training in first-aid or emergency medical care.

“When I couldn’t find an actual ambulance, I eventually had to carry my father in a regular wagon which had been turned into a makeshift ambulance. Now I have to take my father back to our hometown and ambulance drivers here are charging an arm and a leg for that,” Shahid told lamentingly, urging the government to invest in better emergency services for the public.

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Per official figures, the population of Punjab is counted to be around 110 million, but unofficial sources claim that the actual number is close to 120 million. Out of the 4,719 vehicles registered as ambulances in Punjab, over 2,885 are owned by NGOs, 1,698 by Punjab government and 136 by the centre.

However, excise department sources claim that even out of the limited number of registered ambulances, many are laying non-operational or have been taken off the roads. Owing to which, the province, quite like Balochistan, is almost entirely reliant on the ambulance networks of NGOs to tend to its healthcare system.

On the other hand, among the ambulances owned by the Punjab government, the Department of Emergency Services Rescue 1122 contributes over 758 vehicles, while the remaining ambulances are in use by government hospitals due to technical glitches and lack of funds for repairs.

The Rescue 1122 emergency ambulance service was set up almost two decades ago at the central level in Punjab. Record from the Department of Emergency Services reveal that 97 per cent of the total calls made by the public are for ambulances needed for emergency situations. Speaking in the regard, the department’s director general Dr Rizwan Naseer said that the Punjab government has recently approved a plan under which the current financial year will see the approval for provision and extension of emergency ambulance and motorbike services in all tehsils of the province.

In addition, he said that the government has also approved the purchase of helicopters to inaugurate an air ambulance scheme. “If they agree, phone calls received in an emergency could be transferred to them, but the proposals have been turned down by the NGOs because ambulances legally required to be equipped with the necessary medical supplies and trained staff.”

“The second type of ambulance service is post hospital, that is, ambulance used to transport patients or the deceased from the hospital to home.”

Published in The Express Tribune, September 5^th, 2021.