108 (emergency telephone number)

108 is a free emergency telephone number in 25 States & Union Territories of India.[1] In Madhya Pradesh, the 108 GVK Ambulance facility was implemented in July 2009. Since October 2016, Ziqitza Healthcare ambulances have been operating in the state of Madhya Pradesh.[2][3] The service is a public–private partnership between state governments and private emergency medical services providers. This service was rolled out initially in Andhra Pradesh.This system was later introduced nationwide by former Union Health Minister, Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss.[4] The service became popular in rural Andhra Pradesh, the (108) system was later introduced in other parts of India. The system was originally designed by Satyam Infotech. As of November 2014 this service had handled over 540,000 emergency cases. On an iOS device, "Hey Siri, 108" command to Siri will place an emergency call.

Force Traveller as 108 ambulance of Jharkhand.
Force Motors Traveller based 1-0-8 ambulance of Tamil Nadu.

History

108 Ambulance Service was first envisioned by retired doctor and former director of the Andhra Pradesh Handicapped Department, Dr. A.P. Ranga Rao.[5] and implemented by the Late Chief Minister Of Andhra Pradesh Dr Y.S.Rajasekhara Reddy

Scope

The service is available in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand, Sikkim,[6] Jharkhand[7] and Uttar Pradesh) and two Union Territories - Puducherry, Daman and Diu, and Chandigarh.[8]

How it works

When an emergency is reported, the call taker gathers the needed information and dispatches appropriate services.

Emergency help dispatched through this process is expected to reach the site of the emergency in an average of 18 minutes. Pre-hospital care will be given to patients during transport. Patients are transported in ambulances well equipped to handle emergency situations. Road and water ambulances are the two types of ambulances commonly used in India to transport patients. Road ambulances are used across all its states. However, only a few states, namely Odisha, Assam & Gujarat along with 2 Union Territories, have been using boat ambulances.[9][10] Odisha was the first state to launch the boat ambulance by Ziqitza Healthcare Limited (ZHL) for remote areas.[11]

At present, there are only three players - GVK EMRI,[12] Ziqitza Healthcare Limited (ZHL) and Bharat Vikas Group India-UK Specialist Ambulance Services (BVG-UKSAS)[13] who operate Dial 108 in Emergency in public private partnership with state governments. The service is normally free to patients. In Maharashtra, Jammu - Kashmir Dial 108 and in JK in addition to Dail 108, Dial 102 ambulance services are being run by BVG India ltd. Dial 102 service is for pregnant women and child. BVG India ltd chairman and MD is Mr. Hanmantrao Gaikwad. And EMS CEO is Dr. Dnyaneshwar Shelke. In Maharashtra Dial 108 is launched by state government form 2014, this is free service by the Government and is being operated by BVG India Ltd. It was also operating this service in Andhra Pradesh. In Madhya Pradesh BVG India also operating Dial 100 police helpline of the state government.

Siri prank

In March 2017, the emergency number became the subject of a prank in which victims would be told to say 108 to Siri, which would in turn command it to dial the respective country's emergency services. The issue has since been patched with Siri explaining what the number is and asking for confirmation to dial it.[14]

References
  1. "Anbumani Ramadoss, 40 Minister of Health & Family Welfare". The Indian Express (21 May 2009)
  2. "108 AMBULANCE SERVICE". www.zhl.org.in. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  3. "Providing emergency services in MP with 600 ambulances is a challenge". www.hindustantimes.com. Retrieved 24 October 2016.
  4. "Anbumani Ramadoss, 40 Minister of Health & Family Welfare".
  5. https://medicalreportertoday.com/dr-ap-ranga-rao-the-man-who-gave-108-ambulance-services-passed-away/ and Hindu article https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/dr-ap-ranga-rao-dead/article23550409.ece
  6. "Emergency medical response services of 108 and 102 launched in West Sikkim". www.nenow.in. Retrieved 14 January 2019.
  7. "108 ambulance service started in Jharkhand; to reach within 25 minutes in urban areas". www.newsbharati.com. Retrieved 16 November 2017.
  8. "Ambulance Under NRHM". www.pib.gov.in. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
  9. "'108' Boat Ambulance Service Launched To Treat Fishermen at High Sea". www.ndtv.com. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  10. "Boat Ambulance". www.emri.in. Retrieved 24 May 2018.
  11. "Odisha first state to have boat ambulances for remote areas". The Times of India. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
  12. "Emergency Management and Research Institute | GVK EMRI". www.emri.in. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  13. "108 in Crisis: Complacency and Compromise Undermine Emergency Services' Potential". www.epw.in. Retrieved 23 June 2018.
  14. Molina, Brett (24 March 2017). "Police warn about Siri '108' prank". amp.usatoday.com. Retrieved 31 December 2019.
https://medicalreportertoday.com/dr-ap-ranga-rao-the-man-who-gave-108-ambulance-services-passed-away/ and Hindu article https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/telangana/dr-ap-ranga-rao-dead/article23550409.ece (The man who conceptualised 108 and his life)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.