Sharpening skills: ICRC trains doctors for emergency and trauma

Medics call the course ‘refreshing’ and ask for more of such sessions.

PESHAWAR:

With the lack of training among medics to tackle an emergency situation, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) arranged an Emergency Room Trauma Course (ERTC) on Wednesday for the capacity-building of doctors in the city.

A number of doctors from across Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas and other parts of the country were present on the occasion. They included agency surgeons as well as medics from emergency and trauma centres

Foreign experts, including Dr Johann Cunningham (ICRC) and Dr Nelson Olim, a senior surgeon from Geneva, trained doctors on how to treat people in emergency situations, particularly victims of violence and road accidents.

Dr Cunningham said that they had been asked to help build the capacity of doctors in the country.

Doctors termed the training fruitful and asked authorities to hold such sessions on a regular basis so that shortcomings may be addressed.

Landikotal Agency Surgeon, Khyali Khan, who had been posted at the Agency Headquarters Hospital, said the training was informative and refreshing.

LRH Emergency and Trauma Centre Head Dr Abdul Wahab said the medical facility remained at the forefront of dealing with emergencies.

“Not only doctors, but nurses and paramedics also need to be trained properly. ICRC needs to hold such sessions at hospitals,” Dr Wahab said.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 7^th, 2014.