New GPS-supported ambulances, helicopters, better-trained technicians and doctors, as well as ambulance drivers…
All these innovations are part of the announced reorganization of the Serbian Emergency Medical Service, if Serbia adopts the Danish model, which has proven to be one of the most efficient in Europe.
The goal is to reach the patient, anywhere in Serbia, as quickly as possible. Life-threatening patients would benefit the most from ER service organized in such a way. The idea has reportedly already been worked out under the auspices of the “Plan for Optimizing the Network of Health Institutions” project, implemented in cooperation with the World Bank, Euronews reports.
The idea is to divide the entire country, as far as ERs are concerned, into 7 units, where each would have its own triage centre. The ambulances would have a built-in GPS system so that the operator can see which ambulance is the closest to the patient in distress and hence direct the teams in the field.
Is it really possible for an ambulance to reach every location in Serbia in 8 minutes? Euronews was told that “it is possible that help will be provided and every patient will be treated within an hour, wherever they are.”
This would be especially important for the treatment of patients with heart diseases because it is for such patients to get medical help in the first hour after calling emergency services.
The plan also envisages that each local health unit in towns with a population of more than 25,000 should have a 24-hour emergency room service. Most, but not all, of such towns do have such ER service.
The idea is also to introduce a single telephone number for all emergency services – 112 (a European number) – but also to implement the same procedures for all emergency rooms and ensure that they are all well-equipped. By doing so, patients in smaller towns like Bor would be able to receive the same quality treatment as patients in Belgrade or Niš.
(021.rs, 22.05.2022)
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