THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The next time an accident happens, the victims will not be left to fend for themselves. Instead, men in fluorescent green will rush to their rescue. Kerala Police have launched the ‘Save Our Fellow Traveller’ project to provide immediate trauma care for accident victims.
On Monday, over 1,000 volunteers flocked to the Tagore theatre where the project SOFT was being officially launched. The volunteers from various walks of life including autorickshaw drivers, taxi drivers, ex-servicemen, businessmen and even government servants came to register their names.
According to police, eighty per cent of victims don’t get emergency medical care during the ‘golden hour’ after the accident. “WHO has projected that by 2020, road accidents will claim more lives in the country than any other causes. It is here that SOFT and its mission becomes relevant.
Onlookers are usually the first respondents and improper handling of the victims worsen the situation. SOFT aims at equipping people with the basic know-how on what to do and how to proceed while handling accident victims. Though 1,200 volunteers have joined, more people have expressed an interest in joining this mission,” a top police official said.
What is SOFT?
SOFT is a community-based intervention programme which focuses on imparting training to volunteers, who participate in providing immediate medical attention to accident victims so as to reduce the fatality rate. As many as 50 volunteers from each police circle in the district have been groomed and trained so as to tackle an emergency situation. The police will also provide necessary support to take the victims to the nearby hospital and in further proceedings.
Why don’t people help?
The World Health Organisation (WHO) in its report titled ‘Pre-hospital trauma care systems’ lists factors which prevent bystanders from helping accident victims. These include, lack of knowledge about what to do, fear of legal consequences if one’s actions are ineffective or harmful, and fear of involvement in a subsequent investigation. In fact, this led the police to formulate a project which will prove to be helpful for accident victims. According to police, over 40,000 people lose their lives on the roads every year.