When one thinks of Ambulances, one usually tends to think of flashing red lights coupled with sporadic bouts of sirens ringing in the air as the vehicle rushes by in abid to save lives. However, Ambulances are more than just that. In this ever-changing time and space, the medical space has understood the requirement for an organised system for dealing with medical emergencies.
From administering emergency care to those with acute medical problems, to rescuing individuals caught in accidents, ambulance services tend to the entire spectrum of emergency care. Be it early reporting to swift response and quick dispatch of aid, to field care and care in transit, and transfer to definitive care, ambulances have ensured that they are always around to save the day.To the extent, there are different ambulances designed and equipped to tackle specific situations. Read on to know more.
Basic Life Support Ambulance:-
Basic life support (BLS) is a level of medical care administered to victims of non-life-threatening illnesses or injuries until they can be given full medical care at a hospital. This is provided by trained medical personnels, including emergency medical technicians, paramedics, and by qualified bystanders.A BLS ambulance is primarily for those patients that require medical transportation and it contains essentials like a patient bed, a pulse oxyimeter and oxygen delivery devices. Auto-loading stretchers, wheel chair, are also provided for efficient patient management. This emergency service is ideal for patients who have undergone any kind of surgery or are ailing and weak, but do not require advanced support or cardiac monitoring. For that, read on about the next type of ambulance.
Advanced Life Support Ambulance:-
Advanced Life support (ALS) ambulance also known as the Cardiac Care Ambulance is equipped with a ventilator, defibrillator, oxygen cylinder, an electrocardiography (ECG) machine and a monitoring device.These ambulances are mainly used to address life-threatening emergencies including sudden cardiac arrests and the emergencies which require providing oxygen and respiratory support to critically ill-patients. Equipped with these advanced features, ALS ambulance services are better equipped to handle life-threatening situations that involve cardiac arrests, lung related issues and rescue operations, to name a few.
Patient Transport Vehicle:-
A Patient Transport Vehicle (PTV) transports patients to and fro from the medical centers and cater to non-urgent care, for example a visit to the hospital or a dialysis center. For such instances of non-emergency treatment,vans, buses or other vehicles may be converted into ambulances. Equipped with a patient bed & other basic life-support devices, the PTV allows for patients to make the journey in a hygienic environment.
Some other lesser known and sparsely used ambulances are the train ambulance and Air Ambulances. As their names suggest, a patient is transported via train or Aeroplane respectively. This especially is useful when a patient needs to be moved from one city to another, or from a remote area of the country into a metropolitan space. In fact air ambulances are most used in case of medical tourism -when a patient needs to be moved to another country for medical aid. India recognizes the need of air ambulances, and is working on improving the Medical Air Ambulance Transport system, with a focus on easy and swift access to remote areas. There are still many parts of the country which do not have access to basic medical facilities. Developing the Air Ambulance system will not only ensure that medicines and other medical services are made available to even the rural areas, but also help save many lives.