Equip Police with medics for emergency response

By James William Mugeni

The Kiira Road accident leaves a lot to be desired from our Police and perhaps the hospitals. I am going to construct this scenario from the US point of action and please bear with me since at least I have something to compare here.

I am not comparing rocket science but simple common-sense things that I see in the USA which are within Uganda's means. We can make use of knowledge which we abundantly have. After an accident like we saw let us involve our medical teams in debates and advocating for other things that we must do within our means.

Such an accident equips the medical as it is an experience that must not just be washed away. We have a redundant force of paramedics especially clinical officers that can help in the creation of emergency medical services what America calls EMS/EMT. I am sure we can create EMS/EMT.

My exposure is a learning curve and helping me to think outside that box something that is elusive to most of my colleagues. It is so hard to always think under the ministry of health that has reached a ceiling of ideas. There is a need for autonomy as in leave the paramedics to be independent and let them think outside the box and only subscribe to authority.

Immediately after that accident that was captured on camera here is what would have played in the USA. The police would have activated all triage systems of hospitals around the city.

A ready alert sent to all hospitals within the city about that accident. And instant messages on mobile phones informing drivers of roads affected helping automobile operators to choose roads to avoid a mix-up. In America all hospitals within that area both private and public dispatch emergency teams.

In other words, all hospitals private or government have state funding for emergencies. The first response is to save lives irrespective of colour, financial status or religion.

The police in the USA should have immediately declared access routes and escape routes while sealing off other routes that would only be used by ambulances, police and other support teams. There would be rapid response teams in coordination with the hospitals.

The US police would ensure that only medics who serve Emergency Medical Services/Teams are coordinating (EMS/T) with the scene and any vehicle moving around certain routes are on a mission to save lives.

Our police in Uganda can do the above you realize you are reading just public management stuff which our police and politicians are reducing to only managing riots. You have Mulago, Kirudu, Kampala international, Kadic, Rubaga, Mengo and many other hospitals in Kampala and an accident scene is managed by boda-boda?

You can't allow accident scenes to be flooded with boda-boda, in fact, some areas would-be no-go areas for these swarms of motorcycle riders. We should have paramedics who have been trained to preserve, promote and alleviate suffering on duty and on call 24/7 but instead you have boda-boda doing what is a preserve of the medics.

I hope up to this level you see that it is not rocket science that people usually retort to me that Uganda is way million years behind the USA I shouldn't compare notes!

Now madness, Uganda police why would we always respond to accident scenes with AK 47s, Tear gas canisters, open pickup trucks? What would it take for us to teach that at accident scenes we need ambu bags, plasma or blood expanders, we need guys who can do intubation and supply oxygen, people who can do quick CPRs?

We need people who can treat shock We need people who can access victims and do spot diagnosis we need people who can determine methods of evacuation. Shall we need a helicopter, road and what body support You can reconstruct the scenes we see in Magere, or during the public management order actions we see for political rallies.

This is public order management, but it is public order management under emergency medical care and services. It is ambulances blowing sirens, it is transport diverted, it is helicopters. The scene is total intensive care life is being lost. People with guns just add to the crowd that is useless and dangerous.

We perform so well in other incidents and are a total disgrace in other incidents so which department for example handled Busabala, Magere and which department handled Kiira Road accidents? We go so wrong on basics that we continue to give excuses of a 3rd world country.

There are so many things that embarrass those who claim to be professional forces of Uganda. Our police can't tell us they are this primitive not to subscribe to professionalism.

In USA once it is an accident that was clearly captured on camera you are very sure there will be a change of traffic, ambulances and paramedics will be the people plying the roads.

The hospitals which all have an emergency plan will be expecting accident victims.

The writer is a certified public manager and medical clinical officer