Emergency care in India: the building blocks

Abstract

BackgroundThe Republic of India, the world’s most populous democracy, has struggled with establishing Emergency Medical Care. However, with the recent recognition of Emergency Medicine as a formal specialty in medical training, there has been renewed vigor in the developments in the field.Method and ResultsWe outline here the building blocks of the health care system in India, and the contribution each has made and is capable of making to the growth of emergency medical services. We also provide an account of the current situation of emergency medicine education in the country.ConclusionsAs we trace the development and status of emergency medicine in India, we offer insight into the current state of the field, what the future holds for the emergency medical community, and how we can get there.

Out of hospital cardiac arrest resuscitation outcome in North India — CARO study

“…One of the major cause of low survival rates for an OHCA event is due to lack of EMS which is an essential part of the overall healthcare system. [6] Despite tremendous development in the healthcare sector, India is yet to create a single, comprehensive EMS that can be accessed throughout the country; which explains the cause of no significant change in the survival rates for past many decades. In a bid to address this problem, the Centralized Accidents and Trauma Services were set up by the Indian Government in the early 1990s.…”

Survey of the current state of emergency care in Chennai, India

“…Moreover, the very definition of an emergency department varies between hospitals and usually consists of only a simple casualty or accident ward lacking specialty-specific training and resources. [6] With official recognition of the specialty in 2009, there will soon be an infl ux of freshly trained emergency medicine physicians (EPs) ready to lead and grow the specialty.…”

“…[5] Chennai started the first privatized emergency department (ED) modeled on the "American Community Hospital Emergency System" and has hosted one of the very few postgraduate training programs in emergency medicine (EM) in the entire country since 2001, making it a prominent city of interest in the development of EM. [6] Emergency care in the city has in the past largely been provided by four large government hospitals with medical college affiliations. [7] In recent years, there have been an increasing number of private institutions offering 24-hour emergency care.…”

Assessment of Major Outcomes of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) in Relation to Signs and Symptoms at the Time of EMS Call

“…3 Deenanth Mangeshkar Hospital and Research centre (DMHRC), Pune, Maharashtra is one of the pioneering institution to set up EMS services in Maharashtra as early as in 1999 where the present study is carried out. 4 'Golden hour' which typify the importance of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) all over the world. 5,6 Patients who receive basic care from trained professionals and is transported to the nearest healthcare facility within 15-20 minutes of an emergency has the greatest chance of survival.…”

“…DMHRC has initiated its first ambulance service as early as in 1999 with its sister concern hospital. 4 Intensivists from this hospital have their valuable contribution in the development of Maharashtra Emergency Medical Services (MEMS) which was launched in 2014 by government of Maharashtra, India. 13 Institute is offering internship programme for PG -diploma EMS students.…”