The Welfare Secretariat of Nueva Canarias in Lanzarote has denounced the "measure that the Management of the Health Services of the Lanzarote Health Area will supposedly take", which would consist of moving the medicalized ambulance located in the Molina Orosa Hospital to a new base located in the industrial area of Argana Baja. A decision that it considers "incoherent" and that warns that it could have repercussions "on people's lives."
In a statement, NC recalls that Lanzarote only has two medicalized ambulances, one in the Playa Blanca office since 2017, and one based at the Dr. José Molina Orosa Hospital since this service was implemented on the island.
"A medicalized ambulance has two sanitary emergency technicians, where one performs driver functions. In addition, it has a health team comprised of a nurse and a doctor. This type of vehicle is activated by the 112 room from Gran Canaria, when the coordinating center is alerted by an emergency call of vital risk, such as a suspicion of (AMI) acute myocardial infarction, a traffic accident with polytraumatized patients, a (CPR) cardiorespiratory arrest, etc.; where the reaction and assistance time is vital to achieve patient survival upon arrival of the ambulance," he explains.
Likewise, the formation points out that "all recommendations and guidelines in emergency matters are aimed at shortening the reaction and assistance times to a patient in critical condition", pointing out that "that is why it is recommended that the medicalized units have the technical and health team together in the same base as has been the case until now in our Dr. Jose Molina Orosa Hospital, and as the rest of the medicalized units in the Canary Islands operate"
"It will mean an increase in response time"
However, he states that "supposedly the Management's planning contemplates removing the medicalized vehicle based at the Hospital, and transferring the ambulance and emergency technicians to a new base located in the industrial area of Argana Baja, while the nurse and doctor remain located in the Hospital Emergency Service." "What will this decision mean for the entire society of Lanzarote? Well, for example, when the coordinating center receives a call about a possible cardiorespiratory arrest, 112 will jointly notify emergency technicians and the health team, but the doctor and nurse will have to wait at the doors of the hospital grounds for the ambulance to arrive from the base in the industrial area of Argana Baja," they say from NC.
In this regard, the formation warns that "depending on the traffic that accumulates on the single-lane service road that leads to the Hospital", this "may mean minutes and more time lost that will mean an increase in response time, and with it proportionally a decrease in the percentage of survival of the patient at vital risk". "For example, in the case of a cardiorespiratory arrest, the first 4 minutes from the start of the cardiac arrest until the assistance of emergency services at the scene, exponentially increase the chances of survival, after that time the chances of surviving decrease considerably," adds NC, from where they consider that "the health team cannot wait those four golden minutes for the ambulance to arrive from a base kilometers outside the Doctor José Molina Orosa Hospital due to supposedly space problems and that this has repercussions on people's lives."
According to NC, the reason why they supposedly have this "incoherent decision" planned is "due to lack of space to locate the ambulance and the base of the emergency technicians." However, the formation believes that "every possible option should be studied to maintain the base of the medicalized ambulance in the hospital center, guaranteeing the unity of the technical and health team, and thereby achieving a quick and effective response in the event of a warning due to demand for critical assistance."
"We hope for the good of the society of Lanzarote that the Management reconsiders, this decision that seems completely illogical to us is stopped and a physical space is sought in the hospital center that does not harm response times and with it the chances of survival," NC demands.