XN000022-1991-12-19 — Page 12

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THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19, 1991

NEW AMBULANCE-AID MOTORCYCLES TO COME INTO SERVICE

EIGHT NEW

AMBULANCE-AID

MOTORCYCLES

EQUIPPED

WITH

DEFIBRILLATORS AND EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT WILL BE PUT INTO OPERATION NEXT

TUESDAY (DECEMBER 24).

THIS WILL BRING TO 15 THE TOTAL NUMBER OF SUCH VEHICLES SERVING THE PUBLIC IN THE FIRE SERVICES AMBULANCE COMMAND.

THE NEW MOTORCYCLES, AT $190,000, ARE EQUIPPED WITH AUTOMATIC DEFIBRILATORS, ENTONOX ANALESTIC APPARATUS AND OXYGEN RESUSCIATORS.

SPEAKING AT A PRESS PREVIEW TO INTRODUCE THE NEW VEHICLES, CHIEF AMBULANCE OFFICER, MR CHEUNG CHAN-CHUNG, SAID: "THE MOTORCYCLES WERE FIRST INTRODUCED IN 1982 UNDER A TRIAL SCHEME AIMED AT PROVIDING SPEEDY TRANSPORT FOR AMBULANCEMEN AND EQUIPMENT ΤΟ GIVE STABILISING TREATMENT TO PATIENTS AND CASUALTIES BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF STANDARD AMBULANCES WHICH MAY BE DELAYED BY TRAFFIC CONGESTION.

"EARLY THIS YEAR, WHEN DEFIBRILLATION SERVICE WAS FIRST INTRODUCED IN THE AMBULANCE SERVICE, SEVEN MOTORCYCLES WERE EQUIPPED WITH THE MACHINE.

"THE NEW MOTORCYCLES ARE HAVING SIMILAR DESIGN AND MODIFICATIONS BUT OF GREATER HORSE-POWER OF 650 CUBIC-CENTIMETRE TYPE. THE CURRENT MOTORCYCLES ARE OF 400 CUBIC-CENTIMETRE TYPE, MR CHBUNG SAID.

DEFIBRILLATION IS A PROCESS OF ABOLISHING FIBRILLATION RHYTHM TO RE-ESTABLISH NORMAL RHYTHM AND CONTRACTION OF THE HEART, ACHIEVED BY PASSING A CONTROLLED ELETRIC CURRENT THROUGH THE HEART.

THE AMBULANCE-AID MOTORCYCLES ARE TO BE STATIONED IN 13 AMBULANCE DEPOTS THROUGHOUT THE TERRITORY.

NEW

BE

MR CHEUNG SAID THE

MOTORCYCLES HAD BEEN PROVED TO SUCCESSFUL, ADDING THAT IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS, THE EXISTING MACHINES HAD ATTENDED OVER 6,000 EMERGENCY CALLS AND 5,164 PATIENTS.

"SINCE THE INTRODUCTION OF DEFIBRILLATION ON JANUARY 28 THIS YEAR, A TOTAL OF 1,190 PATIENTS HAD BEEN TREATED BY THE DEFIBRILLATORS

RECEIVED BY THE END OF NOVEMBER. OF THEM, 114

ELECTRIC SHOCK AFTER ANALYSIS, AND 45 PATIENTS WERE ABLE TO REGAIN THEIR

THEY WHEN

ARRIVED AT HOSPITALS.

PULSE

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