World Class Emergency Medical Service launched in Mumbai in association with the London Ambulance Service
Mumbai becomes the first Indian city to get an affordable world class
24-hour life support Ambulance Service accessible to anyone
Mumbai, May 21, 2005
Ambulance Access For All, a not-for-profit Emergency Medical Service (EMS) Organization, today launched “1298 Dial For Ambulance”, an affordable dial-up Ambulance service in association with the London Ambulance Service (LAS), a British Government agency and the world’s finest Ambulance service.
This is the first time London Ambulance Service has worked with any Ambulance service in Asia and is partnering in this initiative with Ambulance Access for All as an Indo-British goodwill gesture with support from British Council in India.
This service can be easily availed by anyone in the city of Mumbai by calling 1298 from any telephone, landline or mobile in Mumbai. At present, the area of service covers from Colaba to Dahisar Toll-gate on the Western Expressway and Colaba to Vashi bridge / Thane Toll-gate.
The charge for this service starts from Rs. 500.00, marginally higher than the taxi fare in the city. The charges will depend and vary according to the destination of the patient / trauma victim. This service is open to every resident / visitor in Mumbai as there is NO MEMBERSHIP REQUIRED to use this service. In cases of extreme economic poverty, the service will reduce / waive the charge for service, if the destination of the patient / victim is the non-payment ward of a Government / BMC Hospital.
Rapid response
1298 Dial For Ambulance currently consists of 10 (ten) state of the art Ambulances, modeled on those of the London Ambulance Service. Mumbai City will be divided in to 10 (ten) zones with one Ambulance placed strategically in each zone to reach any location quickly. On receiving a call at the 24 hour /7 days a week Control Room, the point of origin of the call will be immediately located using GPS (Global Positioning System). The nearest Ambulance will then be dispatched on RTS (Realtime Tracking System). This will enable the Ambulance team to reach the patient in the minimum possible time.
In addition, a detailed GPS enabled digital mapping of the city in the Control Room enables them to direct the driver to take the shortest route to the patient location / hospital. 1298 Dial for Ambulance is working with the telecom companies to equip the hospital ERs (emergency room) with incoming telephone hotline to update them of the condition of the incoming patients / trauma victims on board the 1298 Ambulances.
State-of-the-art Ambulances
1298 Dial for Ambulances are modeled along the lines of the London Ambulance service’s state-of-the-art Ambulances. They are painted in high visibility YELLOW paint and have high intensity GREEN and YELLOW REFLECTIVE markings; this makes the Ambulance highly visible in any light condition, day or night.
The Ambulances are fully equipped with the following;
• Defibrillator, Automatic Mode + Manual Mode
• E.C.G.
• Cardiac Monitor
• Ventilator
• Suction Machine
• Resuscitation Kit
• Pulse Oxymeter
• Oxygen
• Collapsible Trolley
• Stair Chair
• Nebulizer
• Emergency Medicines
The Ambulances are fully air- conditioned, partially sound proofed with joints sealed with silicon (for better infection control). The monochrome construction of the vehicle provides greater patient comfort and makes it an ideal choice for patient transport.
Each Ambulance has a crew consisting of
• A Doctor / Paramedic / Medical Consultant who have completed PGDEMS (post- graduate diploma in emergency medical services), it’s equivalent with a minimum work experience of 1 year in an ICU / ICCU / NICU.
• A Trained Driver who has undergone basic life support, navigation, road safety and quick response.
• A Helper with basic First Aid Training.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr Shaffi Mather, Director, Ambulance Access for All, said, “1298 Dial for ambulance network is aimed at making emergency medical service available to any resident / visitor in Mumbai in the minimum possible time and at very affordable charges based on the destination of the patient. This service will enable saving human lives, which may otherwise have been lost ONLY for want of timely medical attention.”
The core group behind this initiative has been motivated deeply from personal experiences to take this project forward. Over Rs. 2.5 crores have been spent till date to take the project to its present status.
1298 Dial for Ambulance is sponsored by State Bank of India, Hindustan Petrolem, Playwin Foundation of Essel Group and a leading Indian Corporate Group who wish to remain anonymous at this point in time.
The service is supported by the London Ambulance Service, the British Council, Confederation of Indian Industry, Association of Hospitals, Mumbai, Association of Medical Consultants, HDFC Mr. Cyrus Gusder, Mumbai, society of Emergency Medicine in India (SEMI), Times Foundation and the six telecom operators – MTNL, Orange, Airtel, BPL Mobile, Tata Indicom and Reliance Infocomm.
About Ambulance Access for All
Ambulance for All is a not-for-profit organization and has been running /, providing advanced life support (ALS) Ambulance service for the last 12 months in a pilot mode. At present, around 25 patients / trauma victims are served daily and over 2000 patients / trauma victims have been served till date during the pilot set-up stage.
Ambulance Access for All aims to build a network of ALS Ambulances in Mumbai providing:
• Basic Life Support (BLS)
• Advanced / Specialized Life Support (ALS)
• Patient Transport Service (PTS)
The core idea behind the 1298 Dial for Ambulance initiative from Ambulance Access for All is to fill in the vacuum in Emergency Medical Service / Transportation in the Indian health care delivery channels.
Ambulance Access For All aims to provide compassionate, high quality life support ambulance service (emergency medical service) with regional support facilities and personnel serving various cities across India.
For more information log onto; https://1298.org.in
About London Ambulance Service
The London Ambulance Service (LAS), a British government agency is the largest free ambulance service in the world, caring for more than one and a half million patients every year. It serves two main functions - the provision of an Accident and Emergency service to respond to 999 emergency calls in London and Patient Transport Service in London, which performs an important role in taking patients to and from their hospital appointments.
