NE HEALTH BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, NOV 22
Claiming to be the first-of-its-kind in Gujarat, Marengo CIMS Hospital, Ahmedabad on Tuesday launched ‘Stroke Ambulance’ service to commemorate the World Stroke Day.
One of the three largest emergencies that can claim lives is ‘Strokes’. The first 4.5 hours are considered to be the most crucial or in other terms ‘golden hour’ because stroke patients have a high chance of survival and prevention of long-term brain damage if they receive medical treatment within the first 4.5 hours of the onset of symptoms. The healthcare group claims that its 24×7 ambulance service will help patients reach the hospital within that ‘golden period’ and treatment starts within 25 minutes.
The hospital believes that ‘Every minute counts, Every life matters’. This initiative will support in saving more lives from fatalities, more lives can be prevented from facing disabilities resulting from paralysis and better services can be provided through the ambulance.
The ambulance service was launched by Neurophysicians Dr. Mukesh Sharma, Dr. Keval Changadia, and Dr. Dhrumil Shah with Neurosurgeons Dr. Parimal Tripathi, Dr. Y C Shah, Dr. Deven Zaveri, Dr. T K B Ganapathy, Dr. Sandip Shah, Dr. Jayun Shah.
A stroke, or brain attack, is a condition when blood stops flowing into the brain, causing emergency. When an individual has a stroke, every second matters as every second is crucial. Time is urgent and precious as stroke results in the brain tissue and millions of neurons starting to fade away. The brain needs a constant flow of blood and when this flow is interrupted, within a short span of time cells in the brain begin to die without blood or oxygen. This impacts bodily functions, and the person may not be able to do many things such as move a part or parts of the body, speak, eat, remember or think, internal control of the body such as the bladder and many more abilities.
- Holds seminar for senior citizens to save more lives and bring more awareness on the timely medical help crucial in saving lives
- The three emergencies that claim the most lives are brain strokes, heart attack and Road Traffic Accidents.
- Marengo CIMS offers “SABSE FAST AAPKE PAAS” Ambulance within 15 minutes; the toll free number is 1800 309 9999
- Gujarat registers approximately18,000 brain stroke cases per month; Western India reports more cases
Through the launch of the ambulance, Marengo CIMS strives to increase awareness of stroke signs and benefits of timely access to emergency medical care. The vehicle will be equipped with ACLS support, a ventilator and ACLS Train Medical officer, Nursing Staff, attendant and Driver. The turnaround time to reach the patient is targeted at a mere 15 minutes.
Dr. Mukesh Sharma, Head of the Stroke Program, Marengo CIMS Hospital says, “Stroke is caching up in younger population, contrary to common perception that it belongs to the older age groups, and lives are lost untimely due to delay in reaching the patient to a medical emergency within a stipulated time. Nothing, but only early treatment that can reduce morbidity and mortality. Our endeavour is to go beyond saving lives to create increased awareness of recognising the symptoms of a stroke to help build awareness on the Golden Hour. Our efforts in introducing refreshed protocols are to strengthen the medical response and the response of the support functions. It is also to create a matrix where a patient or an attendant is able to get medical help seamlessly and we are able to save more and more permanent disabilities and lives lost due to these circumstances. The cost of this treatment ranges between Rs 2 lakh and Rs 5 lakh which is covered under Ayushman Bharat Scheme.”
Dr Keyur Parikh, Chairman Marengo CIMS says, “The capacity of a human body to fight back will always remain an astonishing fact. But there are always obstacles and circumstances that we endeavour to overcome in our mission to save more lives. With the launch of the Stroke Ambulance, we hope to extend the services of a fast response to bring down the number of lives lost due to lack of awareness and laxity in taking timely action as an outcome of that.”
According to Dr. Keval Changadia, sudden numbness or weakness in the face, arm, or leg, especially on one side of the body, sudden confusion, trouble speaking, or difficulty in understanding speech, sudden trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance, or lack of coordination are some of the recognisable symptoms of a stroke.
“In such a case one should be immediately rushed to a stroke-ready hospital and immediate treatment should be given to prevent any irreversible damage to the patient,” Dr. Keval Changadia said.
Dr Raajiv Singhal, Founding Member, MD & CEO, Marengo Asia Healthcare said, “Stroke, also called brain attack, nearly 15 lakh stroke cases are detected in India annually, of which Gujarat has a major share. Research shows a shocking number of 600 cases of stroke recorded every day in Gujarat, almost 20% in people aged below 45 years. In our vision of “Patient First”, every life matters, every minute matters. In our newer initiatives at Marengo CIMS Hospital, we are introducing the stroke ambulance in taking another step towards saving more lives, creating more awareness, and making timely medical emergency accessible. The stroke ambulance will make a significant difference to timely intervention with well-trained medical staff to result in vastly improved outcomes and save many lives now, as opposed to lives lost earlier due to lack of quick response.”
Around 4000 stroke cases happen daily and not more than even 2 to 3 percent are treated. India currently accounts for 60 percent of stroke patients worldwide. Less than 1 in 4 Indians are aware of stroke symptoms. Gujarat registers approx. 18,000 brain stroke cases per month. Studies reveal that stroke is linked to faulty lifestyle, obesity, excessive junk food intake, high blood pressure, high blood sugars, high cholesterol and over consumption of alcohol and smoking.
