A call for pre-hospital trauma care
About 12 thousand people in Bangladesh die each year on the roads and another 35 thousand sustain fatal and non-fatal injuries, according to a Dhaka based accident research institute. Road traffic injury has become epidemic in Bangladesh. The rising trend of accident is alarming and experts urged to take urgent action to put a stop in the running wheel. Although primary prevention-avoiding the occurrence is the best option to address the huge toll from road traffic injuries, measures to provide adequate medical response to enhance treatment and thereby minimise harm following an injury is an integral part. In many instances, the prompt provision of emergency care and rapid movement of injured victims from the scene of injury to a health-care facility can save lives, reduce the incidence of short-term disability and dramatically improve long-term outcomes. Unfortunately, the capacity to provide this basic level of medical care or pre-hospital care system does not exist in Bangladesh. It is evident that accident victims who receive pre-hospital care within one hour and transfer to the facility care quickly, chances of survival (even with disabilities) are much higher. This is why the first hour following injury is called the golden hour. Pre-hospital trauma care could influence the survival rate of trauma patients by providing first aid at the scene of crash, transferring patients to the appropriate hospital, as well as by reducing transfer time. There are several buildings built for trauma hospital nearby highways but these are non-functional due to lack of skilled manpower, instrument and support. Still, we do have limited choice and depend only a few hospital located in Dhaka city for advance trauma care. In order to improve trauma care system, World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended formulating a guideline or policy with level trauma care-first responder care, basic pre-hospital trauma care and advanced pre-hospital trauma care. It has been seen that health worker, community volunteers and other citizens with minimal training in pre-hospital care, working in concert with professional health-care providers and the formal medical care structures, can provide effective and sustainable pre-hospital trauma care, regardless of a nation's level of resources. Along with the training of community people, experts urged government to enhance the health-care capacity and improve access to care for a wide range of emergency problems. WHO predict that road traffic injury will increase from being the ninth leading cause of death in 2004 to the fifth leading cause in 2030. More than 90 percent of these deaths occur in low and middle income country like Bangladesh and most of them are young and economically productive. A single road crash does not mean a single death or disability. It also means trauma to an entire family-both psychological and economical. Let's join the call, a call for action to prevent road traffic injury.
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