Comprehensive Trauma Care Rescues Accident Victims In The Golden Hour

Comprehensive Trauma Care Rescues Accident Victims In The Golden Hour
The Times of India


A road accident claims a life every 12 minutes in the country.
Bangalore comes next only to Delhi in the number of road accidents.

Bangalore: Given these alarming statistics, Sanjeevini’s service is particularly impressive. This free, 24/7, mini hospital on the roads not only starts emergency treatment from the accident spot itself but also rushes the patient to the nearest hospital within 20 minutes.

Having handled 12,000 accident cases in six years, Comprehensive Trauma Centre (CTC), a non-profit organisation running this service, has 28 hospitals and 32 ambulances accredited to it.

“CTC also stands for Communication, Transportation and Care on the roads. That’s why we started the concept of attending to patients right from the time we reach the accident spot rather than wait for the victim to be brought to the hospital to start treatment,’’ said CTC founder and managing trustee, Dr N K Venkataramana. In road accidents, 73 per cent of the injuries are neurology related and result in death or permanent handicaps only because prompt medicare is not available.

The reasons are many. The brain of the injured person can be permanently damaged within five minutes of oxygen supply being cut. The person can die of suffocation if the tongue falls back inside the mouth, choking the wind pipe. Besides, there can be fluctuating blood pressure, changing breathing pattern, fits, vomiting and tremendous tissue change taking place in an unconscious body. This can be checked within the first hour of the accident if relief is made available.

In medical parlance, this is the ‘golden hour’ — a period in which if proper medicare is given, the chances of survival without deformities are maximum. The tragedy is that in the city, the average delay in bringing the patient to a hospital is around six hours, by which time it is already too late.

More so, since 70 per cent of the injured are brought by autorickshaw or private vehicles and only 15 to 20 per cent are transferred by an ambulance. Considerable damage is done while transporting the injured. “There have been cases when the injured have had permanent disabilities or excessive blood loss because either those trying to help have manhandled the injured while transporting him or there have been worse injuries when glass pieces have been pulled out of the wound by inexperienced hands,’’ said Dr Venkataramana.

HOW DIALLING 1062 HELPS?

Sanjeevini aims at providing medicare at the right time, with the right method and at the right place. It has a state-of-the-art ambulance comprising trained paramedics, a first-aid kit, suction apparatus, an oxygen cylinder, a spinal board and a dedicated control board.

When an accident is reported, the ambulance stationed at the nearest point is alerted and its movement tracked by a Global Positioning System. A digital map of the city shows if it’s likely to get trapped in traffic and the help of the traffic police is sought to ensure it reaches the spot quickly.

The treatment of the injured starts the moment the ambulance arrives. The Automated External Defibrillator (AED) in all the ambulances not only reads the BP, does an ECG but also gives detailed instructions to the paramedics on the course of treatment.

The CTC also has solar-powered first-aid centres and has started airlifting the injured. While such a centre is located with an ambulance stationed every 25 km along the Bangalore-Mysore Highway and the Bangalore-Mangalore highway, one such facility has been started at the Bangalore-Tirupati highway recently.

The centre is the first of its kind, two trained paramedics and equipment for emergency treatment. CTC has also done 13 air rescues since it was launched on July 21, 2003 and the airlifted injured are brought to Manipal Hospital in Bangalore.

ON THE SPOT

WHAT YOU SHOULDN’T DO

Do not leave the injured unattended Do not panic Do not pour water into the mouth of the injured Do not transport the injured unassisted

WHAT YOU SHOULD DO

Dial 1062 Shift the injured to a safe place by putting the hand under the head and moving the head and the shoulder together Check for airway (by placing your finger in front of the nose to check if the person is breathing), chest breathing, circulation (by feeling the pulse at the side of the neck) Give the injured enough breathing space Protect the belongings of the injured (that help in identification and contacting the family members)

FROM THE CASE FILES

• On February 20, 2006, Deepak Anand Bose (32) was rescued from K R Puram at 1.13 am. He had a significant head injury. An ambulance was located at Pai Layout which rescued him within 5 minutes and he was admitted to Manipal Hospital.

• On February 20, Bhaskar Reddy (25) was rescued from Madivala at 7.46 am. He was lying unconscious with a serious head injury. An ambulance stationed at Hosur Road reached the spot within 10 minutes and he was admitted to Gold Star Hospital.

• On March 5, Prashant (38) was rescued from Hebbal at 5.30 a.m. He had a head injury. An ambulance stationed at Hebbal Flyover rushed him to M S Ramaiah Hospital.

• On March 8, three injured persons — Jagannath (45), Raga (40) and Venkataswamy (35) were rescued from Whitefield. An ambulance stationed at Pai Layout took them to and Vaidehi Hospital.
Most of these accidents were reported by passers-by who called Sanjeevini. All the patients have recovered.