SHILLONG: Right from the onset of service, with the sole function to provide emergency medical care, police and fire assistance, round the clock – GVK EMRI completed five years of untiring, committed and dedicated service to the people of Meghalaya.
The “Wheels of Hope” was set into motion on February 2, 2009 only three months after the Goverment of Meghalaya signed a MoU with GVK EMRI.
Twenty eight 108 Emergency service Ambulance was put into action on the year it was launched followed by two ambulance the year after, then eleven ambulance during the third year, five ambulance during its fourth year of operation and one more ambulance was put in to service last year, bringing the total fleet strength of 108 Emergency Service Ambulance to forty seven.
Two ALS (Advanced Life Support) 108 Ambulances were launched on August 16, 2011. These two ambulances one based in Shillong and the other in Tura are solely meant for ISFT (Inter State Facility Transfer) cases i.e. transferring critical patient to specialty hospitals in Guwahati.
For the process of Sense, Reach and CARE to be able to work in tandem, giving way for smooth flow of the communication right from the time a distress call is lands at the ERC, to the time the ambulance is dispatch to attend and shift the patient to the various health centres, is only made possible due to the many hours of effort put in by the EMTs, Pilots and EROs (Emergency Response Officers).
The continuity flow of the three process have resulted in the ERC handlingone call every one and half minutes, one emergencies every twenty seven minutes and the ambulance team attending to one emergencies every thirty one minutes in site
Five years of providing emergency care to the people of the state, the Wheels of Hope have catered to an array of emergency cases and amongst them pregnancy related emergencies top the table.
A total of twenty thousand plus pregnancy related cases have been assisted by the 108 Ambulance team, of which seven hundred plus deliveries were conducted inside the 108 ambulance successfully.
To achieve perfection with no space for error while carrying out their duties towards providing emergency care to the public, the 108 Ambulance team comprising of EMTs (Emergency Medical Technician) and Pilots need to undergo training at regular interval.
Foundation training helps in imparting knowledge and skill to the new trainees so as to enable them to handle all emergency in the community with confidence.
On completion of the foundation training, it is mandatory for the EMTs to attend the GCP (Global Certification Program) training which include BLS (Basic Life Support), ITLS (International Trauma Life Support) and BLSO (Basic Life Support Obstetrics) and on completion of the GCP training the EMTs are awarded certificates issued by AHA (American Heart Association), ITLS and AAFP (American Association of Family Physician).
