"It is the formal beginning. The service would be further extended with time," said Gyan Bahadur Bisural, President of Ratna Nagar branch of FNCCI while inaugurating the service. He informed that technicians have already saved life of two severely injured patients through the service. The two were injured in a road accident in Ratna Nagar recently.
President of Nepal Ambulance Service, Om Raj Bhandari, who is also member of the FNCCI Ranta Nagar, stated that “emergency service is vital in saving life of critical patients. More so when road to hospital is long and rough.” According to Bhandari, the service in Ratna Nagar would be provided under the care of FNCCI. "Even in capital, only five such ambulances are in operation. It's a pleasure to start it here, too," he said. Bhandari added that the service will be introduced in Pokhara and other cities by next year.
During the program, Chief District Officer of Chitwan, Binod Prakash Singh expressed hope that the 'ultra modern technology' would be helpful in saving lives. "Emergency ambulance service means not only the availability of modern machines or technology, but also the technicians to provide the service. I hope that this is going to be very useful in saving lives," he said.
According to Bhandari, EAS is equipped with all the services of an emergency hospital room. Thus, for injured patient, getting to EAS is just like reaching out to a hospital on time. "Not only emergency service is provided but also the patient's medical report is prepared right in the ambulance. This saves time for doctor when the patient gets to hospital," he said.
Toll free number for the service is 102. After the call is made, medical technicians receive it and suggest the caller on how to help the patient till the ambulance reaches to the patient.
Dr Krishna Poudel, Medical Superintendent at Ratna Nagar hospital stated that the challenging part is its management. "Even though the service is very useful, it is not easy to ensure sound management for it," he said.
Local levels in Banke without ambulance facilities