An awareness walk was organized by the Rescue 1122, Pakistan Highway and Motorway Police (PHMP) and school students at Jamber on Saturday. The main purpose of the walk was to raise awareness among the community, drivers, commuters and public at large about the importance of their response to the emergency situations, road accidents and any injuries that might occur routinely. The theme for the walk was, “If there is a road crash, you could be the first player on the scene.”
The average response time of Punjab Rescue and Emergency Services (Rescue 1122) for the road accidents is seven minutes however it may vary depending on the place of accident and availability of the ambulance at that time. It has been noted that most of the casualties occur when the patients do not receive any emergency help in the first place. So, for this reason, the role of community and their training of first aid are very necessary.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent, in partnership with the United Nations, have announced September 8 as the World First Aid Day. Over one million people across the globe and 2.69% of Pakistanis die each year because of the road accidents and according to the Red Cross, the major cause of deaths is Anoxia (a state in which the airway is blocked). In such a situation, a layman can give the first aid and save many lives. As per the statistics issued, 90% of global road accidents occur in low and middle-income countries and road accidents are the ninth leading cause of death in the world.
Published in Daily Times, September 9th 2018.
