Mrityunjoy in Assam enters second year of service

It was a year ago that, a revolution happened in the state of Assam with the launch of the world class fleet of ambulances from GVK EMRI-108, fondly called Mrityunjoy. Now it has entered into the second year of service and has become a part of common man’s life. The people of the region mostly in the rural areas, never imagined that a round the clock five star category of emergency service would be readily accessible by dialing 108, that was to be free, was equally unbelievable. This service was made available to the people of Assam, upon signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) by the Government of Assam and GKV-EMRI on July 8, 2008, by using mobile, landline in case of emergencies like, medical, police and fire. After its inaugural launch by Assam’s chief minister on November 6, 2008, district launches were executed in a phased manner in all the 27 districts of the state. Now the people dial 108 using mobile or landline phones in case of emergencies. The process of providing emergency service to the people is very systematic and appropriate. Once a caller calls for help dialing 108, the call is answered by a communication officer stationed at the emergency response centre. After collecting; important details like the type of emergency, the address, the call is then escalated to the dispatch officer, who assigns and ambulance or fire brigade vehicle or police vehicle whichever is appropriate for the emergency. In its bid to benchmark with the world’s best in class GKV-EMRI has collaborations with several foreign organizations in the related service areas. Apart from handling the day to day emergencies it has also made progress in Emergency Research and Training. Till now it has attended 1, 97,232 emergencies and saved 11, 500 live. Also 950 births have taken place inside Mrityunjoy 108 ambulances. The ambulances base to scene takes time less than 20 minutes in urban areas and 30 minutes in rural areas. Scene to hospital takes time less than 25 minutes. GVK-EMRI is a non-profit organization with a Public Private Partnership (PPP) business model of which 95 percent of costs are funded by the respective state government. It has tie ups with over 6,800 private and government hospitals, to ensure immediate patient stabilization on admission to the hospitals. A completely free service, anyone, anywhere in the operational states can call the toll free number 108 for any emergency and help will reach them in an average of 15 minutes, in an urban area and 20 minutes in rural areas, subject to road conditions. The 108 is accessible from a landline, mobile phone, local telephone booth and can be dialed without any prefix or suffix. Ambulances are equipped with medical equipments ranging from defibrillators and ventilators, to extrication tools, to handle almost any emergency situation. When a caller dials108 to report an emergency, the call lands at the 108 emergency response centre where the call taker gathers the necessary information, regarding the type of emergency and the location of the emergency scene-where the caller calls from. After gathering the information either the ambulance, fire vehicle or the police, is dispatched depending on the type of emergency. The emergency medical technicians in the ambulance and emergency response centre physicians and will provide free pre-hospital care in the ambulance while transporting the victim to the nearest hospital of his choice. 108 handles all kind of medical emergencies, like acute abdomen illness, respiratory disorders, asthma attacks, heart attacks, suicide related, pregnancy related, road accident cases etc. 108 also handles police emergencies like theft, bodily offence, property offences. Etc.