Doctors may soon be able to talk to patients and their families through medical emergencies by using the ‘Selfie Aid’ app, a smart application that will link both parties remotely while they wait for an ambulance.
If approved, this proposal will be added to those already implemented by the ‘Green Team’ comprising the Dubai Police, Dubai Health Authority, Dubai Ambulance and Civil Defence.
Brigadier Omar Abdulla Al Shamsi, Deputy Director of the General Department of Operations at the Dubai Police, said a doctor will guide a patient’s family via video chats using the smart ambulance app until the ambulance arrives. “If this initiative is approved, the patient or the patient’s family will be able to video chat with a doctor in times of medical emergency so that they know exactly what to do before the ambulance arrives. Again, this will help enhance the response time,” he said.
“Among the first initiatives that have already been implemented on a trial basis is to have doctors in the control room. This is to help Dubai Ambulance paramedics so that they have access to immediate consultation when they are dealing with critical cases. This helps further speed up the response time and paramedics do not need to wait until the patient is transported to a hospital.”The other initiative that has been implemented is a doctor accompanying paramedics in critical cases, said Brig Al Shamsi.
Other innovative proposals
The Green Team is a team of the ‘City Makers Race’ initiative launched by Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Dubai Executive Council, that aims at boosting government services and encouraging cooperation among various government entities. The move is aimed at providing new government services to all segments of the society and give departments a chance to compete as a team rather than a single entity.
Among the proposals under discussion by the Green Team is having a unified number for emergency cases rather than have separate numbers for the fire department, police, ambulance, etc. “It is easier for the customer to remember one number. Centralising the control room will further help improve emergency services,” he said.
At a strategic meeting held by the members of the Green Team on Sunday, George Kordahi, a prominent Arab personality, was announced as a member of the team.
Lt.-Colonel Abdulla Hassan Matar Al Khayat, Deputy Director of the General Department of Total Quality, Dubai Police, said: “The other initiative in the pipeline is to raise awareness about first-aid among the public. We will hold first-aid training programmes ... for several categories of people such as mall security guards so that they are aware of what to do in times of medical emergencies.”
The team has also launched a hashtag in Arabic under the title ‘Dubai paramedics’ to get opinion from the public on how to further improve services. All these initiatives will be presented in September 2015 as part of the City Builders Race initiative.
By Asma Alizan
