Last night, I read in a magazine that PCR (Police Control Room) Van is the biggest ambulance in Delhi and transports more than 50,000 injured people to hospitals every year to the hospitals. Its quite appreciable considering other 'records' of Delhi Police. The context was the news that policemen will now be rewarded if blood stains are found on their uniform while transporting a patient to hospital, which they were not doing earlier to avoid any stains.

Now, if PCR Van is the biggest ambulance service, what are the other ambulance services are doing, and given the fact that PCR Vans are not equipped with advanced life support systems, we can imagine the kind of emergency service we are giving to the patients.

There are approx 90 odd ambulance services in Delhi alone, and most of them are not in good condition, leave apart equipments of advanced life support systems. There have been few attempts by some private individuals and even few NGOs to start ambulance services but they have mostly not been successful.

The possible reasons for the failure include - our attitude of not paying to private ambulances, lack of maintenance of ambulances by hospitals (especially government ones), little importance given to 'good ambulance service' by hospitals. I guess the attitude is they are just vehicles to fetch patients, while it should ideally serve as a place where first treatment can be started and the patient's trauma can be relieved to an extent.

Why cant we have good ambulance services? Like some corporate entity running a professional ambulance service? A CATS ambulance charges a minimum of Rs 300, while a Fortis ambulance costs about Rs 1800 – with ventilator. If we leave Fortis which may be called a hospital upper middle class and upward, if we can spend a big amount on treatment, can we not spend this much on minimising the risk of death and complications? With the increasing number of social investing organisations these days, like Ashoka, I'll say if a professionally ambulance service is started it will definitely get a grant for its social service. However, there has top be a vision and a purpose of caring behind that. If there can be successful model hospitals doing social service, there can definitely be an ambulance service as well doing that?

What is the scope? How should it function according to you?

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