Govt asked to revive ambulance services of hospitals

ALPURI: Local residents have demanded the revival of ambulance services at government hospitals, as patients and their families face difficulties due to the lack of private ambulance services.

Speaking to this correspondent, some residents said that the Rescue 1122 personnel in the district did not go out to other districts.A resident of Alpuri, Mohammad Zaman, said that he had to shift his ailing grandson to a hospital in Swat. However, he said the absence of an ambulance forced them to transport the patient in a private vehicle in which oxygen could not be provided to the patient during the journey.

He said that Rescue 1122 should either extend its services to other districts in times of need or the government should revive the ambulance services of hospitals.Complaints have been also received from various hospitals, including Alpuri District Hospital, Puran, Bisham, and other areas in the region, stating that Rescue 1122 did not transport patients to Swat or Abbottabad.

When contacted, the district officer for Rescue 1122 Sanaullah said that the condition of government hospitals’ ambulances was too weak to shift patients to other districts. He added that the ambulances of Rescue 1122 were operating inside the district but added that their free usage had led to overuse as well.