BENGALURU: The State’s Arogya Kavacha 108 ambulance service is in for a total revamp to bring it on par with global standards. Speaking at an event on Saturday, Health Minister Dr K Sudhakar said, “A mind-boggling number of activities happen from the time an ambulance gets a call to bringing a patient to the hospital. They have to work with military precision and swiftness. An outdated fleet of ambulances will not help. It requires advanced technology, ultra-modern communication equipment, state-of-the-art medical equipment and well-trained staff.”
A 2020 report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) had highlighted the failings of the service. In January 2021, the plan was redrafted and a proposal was made to modernise 108 command centres to increase the call centre seating capacity from 54 to 75.
“It will have GPS tracking of ambulances, location and time-based biometric attendance of staff, live-streaming services of ambulance, online HR management, electronic medical records for patient care, grievance redressal mechanism, etc,” said Sudhakar. The new system will map hospitals with GPS locations. The system will automatically direct ambulances to the closest hospital.