Experts call for national trauma registry, helpline to deal with calamities, emergencies

Emergency medicine experts from various national and international health institutions have called for the establishment of a ‘National Emergency Centre’ and a ‘National Emergency Call Number’ to coordinate emergency services and responses in case of natural or man-made calamities in the country, saying that coordinated efforts by emergency service-providing institutions could save hundreds of precious lives and prevent lifelong disabilities after disasters and incidents of terrorism.

They have also urged the authorities to establish a ‘National Trauma Registry’ in the country to ascertain the causes of deaths and injuries due to accidents and trauma, and suggested that emergency response drills should be conducted on a regular basis in the mega cities to prepare the emergency and medical services in case of any natural or manmade disasters, saying trained and prepared emergency-care providers could prove more effective in minimising loss of lives and limbs.

They were speaking at a scientific session on ‘Emergency Care’ as part of the 54th Annual Symposium of Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center (JPMC) on Friday, which was chaired by eminent neurosurgeon and former JPMC executive director Prof Rasheed Jooma and co-chaired by Dr Seemin Jamali, the serving executive director of the JPMC.

Experts from King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre Saudi Arabia, Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD), Indus Hospital Network, International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) and the JPMC made detailed presentations on different aspects of dealing with medical emergencies and presented their recommendations for improving emergency healthcare, especially in mega cities like Karachi.

Eminent neurosurgeon Prof Rasheed Jooma said the government should immediately establish a ‘National Emergency Centre’ and issue a ‘National Emergency Call Number’ on the pattern of ‘911’ so that in case of any emergency, people could approach the emergency service and the experts available at the emergency response could direct them to the relevant departments and coordinate emergency response in case of any emergency.

“At the moment, doctors and paramedics at the emergency departments of hospitals are not prepared for any emergency and they only come to know about the nature of injuries and trauma after an accident when patients are presented before them. There should be a coordination between emergency services, including ambulance services and casualty departments of medical institutions, which can result in providing better emergency care to people in distress,” Prof Jooma said.

He maintained that in cities like Karachi, the city district government or the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation should take the lead, bring all the emergency medical services, including the ambulance services, under one command, should issue an emergency call number and coordinate emergency response in case of natural or manmade disasters to improve provision of emergency care.

“In additional to that, regular exercises should be held in coordination with all the emergency care providers to deal with any mass emergency in Karachi or any other city of Pakistan,” he suggested and termed the emergency department of the JPMC as the best-equipped emergency service where people from not only all parts of Karachi but also from other cities of Sindh and Balochistan came for seeking medical assistance.

The co-chair of the session on emergency care, Dr Seemin Jamali, was of the view that no hospital should refuse patients requiring medical assistance in emergency. She added that even small hospitals should give first aid to patients in emergency and then dispatch them to tertiary-care centres for proper treatment.

She also called for the training of medical and paramedical staff and said they should acquire communication skills to counsel attendants of patients to avoid any backlash or violence.

Eminent orthopaedic surgery expert Dr Saeed Minhas claimed that injuries kill nearly six million people every year, which is more than HIV/AIDS, malaria and TB combined. He added that injuries and trauma also lead to 40 million disabilities every year, but a large number of these deaths and disabilities are preventable through education and awareness.

“Wearing seatbelts by passengers in four-wheelers, helmets by bikers, following traffic rules, occupational safety standards and taking precautionary measures at workplaces can lead to saving thousands of lives and permanent disabilities in countries like Pakistan,” Prof Minhas said and called for the establishment of preventive departments at federal and provincial levels in Pakistan to save lives from accidents and trauma.

Dr Mirwais from the International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) Pakistan spoke on growing incidents of violence against emergency healthcare providers and said that in most cases, violence and torture on emergency medical staff and healthcare providers could have been avoided. “There is an urgent need for strengthening legal frameworks and policies, incidence reporting, follow up, data collection and analysis, training of healthcare providers, provision of physical security at healthcare facilities and launching awareness campaigns.”

Dr Nadeemullah Khan from the AKUH said that in case of poisoning, vomiting should not be induced and patients should be shifted to an emergency care centres at the earliest, saying that in case of chemical contamination, putting water on the affected persons was advisable.