What do you do when you’re driving and you hear an ambulance siren getting closer?
Do you panic, stay still or do you move aside to make way for the ambulance to pass through?
“Most drivers do not make way for us during an emergency,” explained Dr. Omar Al Sakaf, Director of Medical and Technical Affairs of the Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services (DCAS).
Speaking to Emirates 24|7, he explained that this was one of many problems ambulances face while they’re responding to an emergency.
The doctor stressed, “Traffic is still a problem, the public must give way for all civil service vehicles. We are responding to people who need our help. ”
Those responders include Saeeda Buti Saeed, Head of Regulations and Licensing at DCAS.
She’s been closer to the action out on the road while travelling as part of the ambulance crew.
“One of the big challenges we face is when people follow the ambulances. They find that it’s an easy access through the roads, a way of escaping the traffic,” said Saeeda.
She explained, “It’s very dangerous. Especially when we hit the brakes, it can cause them to bang into us.”
What’s more, there are even drivers who block the ambulances… on purpose.
“We’ve had to call the Dubai Police on several occasions because these drivers block us from moving forward,” added Saeeda.
When the ambulances do get through the traffic, they do arrive at the area in question but not at the exact spot as described by the caller.
That’s because poor direction also account for blocks faced by the paramedics on duty.
Saeeda explains, “Sometimes they call us and hang up before completing the information, we get callers saying they’re on Sheikh Zayed Road, but they do not give us specific details, it’s the same with villa and road numbers too, this can be confusing.”
She stressed that people need to mention a nearby landmark so they can be guided from there.
More problems faced by ambulances while on duty include:
- Callers not giving out complete details of the patient’s medical history, which can help in tending to the emergency.
- Callers not giving out truthful information about the issue – they say it’s a critical condition but once the responders arrive at the scene it turns out to be the opposite. In these cases the medics advise the callers on giving out true information in future as to not waste time in case of a real emergency.
-Public gatherings around the scene of the accident, which is another obstacle for the medics.
- Drivers passing by the accident slow down to stare at the scene. While they slow down this could in turn cause another accident when not focused on the road.
- Drivers not noticing the ambulance parked on the side of the road and crashing into them.
- Drivers racing with the ambulance while they’re transporting the patient to the hospital.
Dr. Omar explained, “We need the public’s support, we need them to understand how important it is for us to perform our job successfully and help the public in their time of need. We need people to also teach their housemaids the proper address in case others are not around. It’s a multicultural environment we’re living in and so awareness of all these points is a must.”
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