Dozens of critically ill patients in the dire need of immediate medical attention across the city and its adjoining areas scarcely get timely treatment because of the tardy communication services that fail to enable timely intervention of the medics. The gap is not because of dearth of medical institutions but absence of an effective mechanism and resources to enable unhindered movement of ambulances to ferry people to hospitals and save lives.
One cannot think here of the concept of ‘green corridor’— now popular after Chennai police created thoroughfare for an ambulance to carry a donated heart from a government hospital to a private hospital for timely heart transplant operation and stopped traffic movement for about 15 minutes for quick transport of the organ. The incident happened on June 16 and was a rare display of police-hospital coordination to save life.
Expecting replication of Chennai’s rare feat in Ranchi is just a wishful thinking unless realities are changed to enable ambulances respond to the urgent medical needs on time. However, changing the ground reality is a herculean task in the face of the challenges that are in the way of a perfect and timely medical services delivery system.
“We can think of a ‘green corridor’ to allow quick movement of ambulances but it depends on the State government and how much determined they are,” said Upendra Jha, an ambulance driver at Sadar Hospital.
Even to help an ambulance driver reduce difference between life and death is a big demand for administration in the absence of any solution to the problem of traffic congestion and encroachment of prominent streets that slows down the pace of a vehicle. Overtaking and not allowing pass to an ambulance are characteristics of a city where creating a green channel is like day dreaming.
“Ambulance is allowed to pass through a signal irrespective of the signal in effect however it is difficult to get pass from certain type of people. We keep on playing hooter to get pass but it all depends on their mood,” pointed out lalji Sharma, another ambulance driver.
The ‘green corridor’ owes its success to a greater cooperation and better coordination between a hospital and traffic police. Although there is deficit in cooperation between hospitals especially privately run and police department the latter believes that such a corridor can be created for a limited period in Ranchi also. “We cannot make a dedicated corridor but we can divert traffic like we see in case of VVIPs movement,” said City SP Anup Birthare.
Interestingly, Ranchi traffic police had initiated an effort to bring hospitals and traffic officials on one platform to provide timely medical relief to accident victims. The effort coined as ‘Golden Hour System’ suffered a setback after initial hiccups and controversies about protection to medical staffs for rendering emergency services.