International Critical Care Air Transfer Team (ICATT), a specialised air ambulance service started by two doctors trained in the U.K., has announced plans to launch its Helicopter Emergency Medical Service (HEMS) in India which will be made available to seriously injured road accident victims free of cost. The company is talking to various States to roll out the service.
HEMS will be equipped with a dedicated fleet of helicopter ambulances to provide more than first aid and medication at the accident spot. It will have advanced ICU equipment and monitoring devices, ventilator and surgical equipment as well as a team of doctors and nurses trained to treat injuries and conduct operations on the accident spot, if required, before moving the victim to the appropriate hospital.
“This will be the first service of its kind to be made available in India. We have been working on this project for five years and have invested around ₹10 crore for this,” Dr. Rahul Singh Sardar, co-founder and director, ICATT said.
He said HEMS is the need of the hour, with one person dying on India’s roads every three minutes.
His co-founder, Dr. Shalini Nalwad said, “HEMS will be launched with a single purpose — to save lives — in areas that have little or no proper medical care.”
Both said accident-related death rate will reduce by over 30% if this service is implemented on a large scale across the country.
The cost of operating HEMS round-the-clock in the State would cost ₹125 crore per helicopter for four years, which is less than the cost of establishing a general hospital in a district. A State like Maharashtra would require about three helicopters to successfully implement this service. While the service will be free of cost to accident victims, the State and insurance companies will bear the cost.
To support HEMS, ICATT has started a training programme called Fellowship in Aviation Medicine for doctors and paramedics.
