Srinagar, January 28: The 108 Jammu & Kashmir Emergency Services has turned out to be a lifeline for pregnant women in J&K as it successfully conducted 1,000 deliveries inside the ambulances in the region.
In J&K, 108 and 102 ambulance services under J&K Emergency Medical Services (JKEMS) was launched in March 2020 and has proved helpful for patients in emergencies.
Mushtaq Ahmed, Project Head, JKEMS, said the service has successfully conducted 1,000 deliveries in Jammu & Kashmir, proving a boon for pregnant women in the region.
“The services has served 2,71,801 patients. Pregnancy-related emergencies served during the same period is 78175, constituting 29 percent of total patients served by 108 JKEMS,” he said.
Among the districts in Jammu & Kashmir, the highest number of pregnancy-related patients have been served in district Udhampur (8,665), followed by Rajouri (7,158), Kupwara (4,968) and Kathua (4,881). While the lowest cases were witnessed in Srinagar (981), Shopain (1,546) followed by Pulwama (1,460) and Kulgam (3,036).
The Project Head said out of the total deliveries assisted by 108 JKEMS, 807 of births have been assisted inside the ambulance while transporting the patient from home to hospital. “Also, 193 of births have been assisted at the scene or at home of the patient,” he said.
Despite the challenging terrains in UT Jammu and Kashmir, the 108 ambulance services have proven to be a lifeline for pregnant mothers. These services have successfully managed cases of twin births as well.
“The service is fully equipped with trained paramedics/EMTs and all life-saving equipment and drugs to provide professional medical help directly to the patient’s doorstep. The EMTs are specifically trained to handle pregnancy-related emergencies,” he said.
The 108 ambulance is equipped with essential pre-hospital care equipment, including delivery kits for handling deliveries inside the ambulance, necessary medicines, IV fluids, oxygen cylinders, suction machines, ventilators, defibrillators, and syringe pumps.
Mushtaq said the presence of emergency medical technician inside the ambulance ensures provision of all necessary pre-hospital care to patients while transported to nearby hospital.
The Project Head said every call received by Centralized Call Centre is treated with urgency of a life-threatening emergency and they are there to serve and save the lives of patients.
Interestingly, the health department has set up base locations for the purpose across J&K at identified places including district, sub-district hospitals, CHCs and some selected PHCs.
He appealed people to call on 108 in case of any medical emergency and expressed gratitude to Health Department, State Health Society, National Health Mission J&K, for their support and assistance in providing emergency medical services in Jammu and Kashmir.
