Edhi Free Ambulance Service at UM Hospital

Sometimes little things can make a big impact. Our small hospital (UM Hospital), which is nothing more than an OPD (Out patient facility), in rural village of Zahidabad (Mardan District) and treats around 150 patients a day, occasionally, receives serious trauma cases. In the past, we would do minor ER and then refer the patients to a bigger hospital in the city of Mardan (an hour drive away). But last week, Edhi Foundation changed all that.

Today, was one of those days when we received many seriously injured patients from a near fatal accident a few kilo meters from our hospital. Our two doctors on duty (one of them is here as a volunteer provided by CDRS Pakistan to assist in Buner and Swat IDP relief) and their support team had to stop their standard operations to handle four trauma cases on urgent basis.

Dr. Qasim and his team managed to get the patients stable and then were quickly loaded in the two ambulances, available through Edhi Foundation, and sent to the city for further investigation and treatment. Our paramedics accompanied the injured through the long journey. Cases like these are now able to avail free ambulance service to the city in a proper vehicle with paramedics on board. In the past, we would simply order a taxi and load the injured into it before sending them off to the city on their own.

Faisal Edhi, the son of famous Abdus Sattar Edhi, took personal notice of our plight and extreme remoteness from the city centers. This situation was made worse with the arrival of hundreds of thousands of IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) in our area from Buner and Swat due to the war on terror waged by Pakistan Army against Taliban, an ambulance service was not only needed but required on urgent basis. Therefore, on May 16, 2009, Edhi Foundation and UM Healthcare Trust took it upon themselves to setup the first twenty four hour free amblulance service in this remote part of Pakistan. These ambulances are totally free and all costs are borne by the Edhi Foundation. Each day, they ferry seriously ill and injured from one point to the other regardless of their caste, creed or financial condition.

This is probably the first time in the history of this region (Sudham Valley) that any kind of regular Ambulance service is made available to the local community and that too free of cost. Considering that almost 200,000 people live in this area and majority live on two dollars a day or less, this is surely a great gift from Edhi Foundation.

UM Healthcare is now treating over 200 patients a day off which almost half are IDPs who are treated free of cost. This number is rising daily due to the huge influx of refugees from Swat and Buner vallies.