Safety with E24|7: Dubai ambulances

When to call an ambulance, and when not to? Where will it deliver you? And how?

We do not like to think of potential casualties and the way we would respond to them, but it is always better to be prepared.

Be it a motorbike, a 4x4 drive or an entire bus, Dubai Ambulance has what it takes to come to the rescue as fast as possible.

However, there are some things you must know to best benefit from this emergency service.

Emirates 24|7 has these do's and don'ts when it comes to availing an ambulance in the UAE.

How to call an ambulance?

It is easy to get a hold of an ambulance of a public hospital. You can call 999, or 998, either will put you in contact with a paramedic.

It is important to be able to describe the location of the patient, as it won’t be the first time an ambulance could not reach the destination. A street name is not enough; a landmark, villa number or coordinates will be good indicators.

Equally important is to describe what the patient is suffering from, and if possible what medical history the person has. In this way, the paramedic can advise what should be done until the ambulance has arrived.


When to call an ambulance?

An ambulance should be called in case of emergency. As straightforward as this sounds, there are plenty of calls that are not at all classified as an emergency, have paramedics pointed out.

A headache, nasal bleeding, dizziness, throat pain, or nausea are no reasons to call an ambulance.
A broken bone, dehydration, chest pain, a stroke, or a heart attack  are valid reasons.

If paramedics conclude that the case is not emergent and the patient insist to be taken to hospital, the patient will be charged for the ride; Dh310.


Can I call an ambulance when I’m expecting to deliver?

When your waters break, when your contractions start or whenever you feel that delivery is near, but a hospital is not you can call an ambulance.

Dubai Ambulance has the so-called Mama Ambulance, dedicated to this very purpose. “The staff in this ambulance is female, so that the women in labour feels at ease,” said Zaid al Mamari, Teamleader at the Seaports Team of Dubai Ambulance.

The ambulance will bring the patient to Latifa Hospital, where the patient must be registered. If the delivery is scheduled in a private hospital, the ambulance can deliver the patient there against a charge.

When do I pay for an ambulance?

In general, the service of an ambulance is for free. This means that it delivers the patient free of charge in case of a valid emergency, and to one of the 3 public hospital in Dubai: Rashid Hospital, Dubai Hospital and Latifa Hospital.

A charge of Dh310 will be added when the person requests to be delivered at another hospital, or when the case is not emergent.


What to do when you are in another emirate?

Every emirate has its own fleet of ambulances, which will be deployed for incidents within its territories.

When a call comes in through 999, the person receiving the call will delegate the right vehicle based on the location.

“There are instances when the paramedic is not sure whether the location is in Dubai or another emirate; when the incident took place in the desert, for example. In such a case an ambulance from both fleets would be deployed,” explained al Mamari.


Types of ambulances

Although the person calling for an ambulance will have to do with whatever mode of transport comes to him, it will be nice to know that this could range from motorbike to 4x4, depending on the location.

In a location with a lot of narrow streets and traffic congestion, like Bur Dubai, the first responder is an often deployed vehicle, explained a paramedic of Dubai Ambulance.

"This vehicle is able to reach at the location first because it can get there fast. Paramedics will evaluate the situation and communicate this to the team of the regular ambulance, which is already on the way."

Whereas the first responder takes the narrow streets, the 4x4 ambulance vehicle is a good option on the highway, he explained.

Recently Dubai Ambulance introduced a desert vehicle for incidents occurring in the desert, an asset not shared by other emirates.

There are vehicles for large people,  pregnant women and motorbikes, in addition to 3 ambulance buses in case of mass casualties. One of these buses is the longest ambulance in the world.

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