The phone rings at the Institute of Emergency Medicine at Madurai’s Meenakshi Mission Hospital & Research Centre (MMHRC). A woman from the congested streets near the Meenakshi Temple seeks help for her husband who is unable to lift his left hand. She fears it is something serious.
Aware of the traffic blocks on city roads, the emergency staff sends its bike ambulance with two trained paramedics. We learn that they are quick to reach the spot; record the man’s vital parameters and identify the symptoms of a stroke. By then the ambulance reaches to shift him to the hospital. The doctors are already ready to wheel him in for a CT scan and he is administered a thrombolysed injection. “When given within first four hours of a stroke, it saves the patient’s life,” says Dr Narendra Jena, the director.
On an average, the bike medics have been handling 20 cases a month in and around the city. And perhaps saving as many lives. They are trained to record the pulse and blood pressure, provide oxygen, give Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) in case of cardiac arrest and treat minor wounds.
On a November night last year, when a bus with 40 passengers turned turtle near Melur, the call for the ambulance came at 2 am. Paramedics M Jeba and Senthil K zoomed off on the modified Hero Ignitor bike fitted with a medical, trauma medical management, and airway management kit, on either side at the rear.
MADURAI, FOR METRO PLUS, 18/07/2019. : The Bike Mobile Ambulance Service at Meenakshi Mission Hospital Institute of Emergency Medicine in the city. Photo: S. James/The Hindu
“We reached the site in 15 minutes and found several passengers injured,” Jeba recalls. The duo immediately tended to the injured while requesting the hospital to send more ambulances. “Every second counts in an emergency .We were able to save 38 lives that night,” says Jeba. There were two casualties and four critically injured were taken to MMHRC. Before the ambulances arrived, Jeba and Selva had already given first aid to most of the passengers to stabilise them. “When we respond quickly, we can save lives,” says Senthil.
“The emergency care given in the first 60 minutes of a trauma is most effective. During the golden hour, a patient needs to be checked for the two Bs — breathing and bleeding. This is where the role of a bike ambulance is crucial as it reaches the spot faster than regular ambulances,” says Dr Jena. He adds, “The aim of bike medics is to reduce deaths due to accidents or any other sudden medical condition. They can negotiate heavy traffic in congested cities or travel on unmotorable roads.” The city got its first private bike ambulance in 2016 and it remains the only one for southern Tamil Nadu. “Bike ambulances have not been used effectively in pre-hospital care, particularly in this region,” says the emergency medicine specialist.
mamp19bikeambulanceJena
The State government introduced a fleet of 108 bike ambulances across the State in 2015. While they scripted success in Chennai, the services were abruptly suspended in Madurai after few months. The MMHRC bike ambulance became operational in February 2016 and has so far attended close to a 1,000 cases not only within the city but also up to a radius of 15 kilometres from Melur to Kapalur, Samayanallur and Nagamalai Pudukkottai.
“ The bike ambulance driver and the pillion rider are both trained paramedics with driving licenses. They carry with them specialised equipment medical items from specialised ambu bags, glucometer, automatic external defibrillator to stethoscope, pulse oxymeter, laryngoscope, nebuliser, different splintings, cardio life support drugs and a range of life saving tablets and injections, IV fluids, bandages and syringes“We are trained to stabilise a patient in the shortest possible time and let the hospital staff know what exactly they have to do once the patient arrives,” says Jeba.
The bike ambulances have some limitations though. They cannot carry bulk equipment, stretchers or take a patient to the hospital. “But the pillion rider carries a mini oxygen cylinder in his backpack,” says Senthil. With their special lights and siren, these vehicles nimbly manoeuvre the crowds and vehicle-filled streets to minimise the delay in treatment.
“The bike paramedics can even handle a call by themselves,” says Dr Jena. “The addition of bikes to the existing fleet of ambulances can drastically improve access to emergency care,” he adds.
