With ambulances and emergency workers increasingly under attack, paramedic drones may soon be launched to deliver life-saving medical services.
The Western Cape Health Department is set to announce the implementation of the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) drone project, reports the Cape Argus.
The drone system will deliver automated external defibrillators to the scene of cardiac arrests, allowing bystanders to have the ability to initiate life-saving measures while awaiting professional medical care.
At Thursday’s launch at the Kloof Nek parking area, EMS spokesperson Deanna Bessick said the project began in January 2017, and that the Western Cape Health’s EMS would become the first government institution in South Africa to be allowed to fly over national key points.
DA provincial health spokesperson Wendy Philander welcomed the drone project, saying the initiative showed the commitment of the provincial government to innovative governance.
Philander said earlier this year that the department had indicated it was in the process of acquiring body cameras with the global positioning system (GPS) and panic button features as part of its technological safety plan to support emergency workers.
ANC provincial health spokesperson Rachel Windvogel said while they accepted that technology advances would improve the service, it would not fix the real challenges facing the EMS service in the province.
Windvogel noted the shortages of ambulances and EMS personnel, and constant complaints regarding EMS response times, especially on the Cape Flats and rural areas.
"The ANC supports all efforts to improve services to patients, but is wary of window dressing and a scheme to look good for the media,“ she said.
She called for better and improved emergency services, "not just jazzed up with some technology while the main service wanes and suffers".
Cape Argus