Air Ambulance services in India

Air Ambulance services in India.

India is a sports loving country and when it comes to cricket, the list of fans is endless. Right from early childhood, bat and a ball are one of the favorite toys that a child owns in India. Raghu's parents headed from Chennai and for work purpose, his parent's migrated to Delhi. Raghu spent his early childhood in Delhi. After school, it was his routine to practice cricket everyday. Raghu was an ardent follower of the game and even went with his group to different stadiums whenever there were important matches held in Delhi or outside Delhi.

This year, Raghu went with his friend's to Chennai for watching an international cricket tournament. Also he had planned to visit his grandparent's. His grandparent’s were very fond of him. During his summer vacation, Raghu used to visit his grandparent's every year. This year he was going to visit them along with his friends and not with his parents; he had a special feeling this time as he was traveling as a grown-up boy. His grandparents too were super excited. They had already started making  arrangements like preparing the traditional snacks, arrangement for the stay of the boys.His grandfather had arranged for a local vehicle one that can take along the boys for site-seeing of their small yet beautiful village and the outskirts where nowadays many tourists use to come to witness its natural and scenic beauty, the temples located on the hills at the outskirt of the village was also popular among people and many people use to visit the temple throughout the year.

The boys reached the village and Raghu's grandparents were overjoyed to see them all. The entire day passed by chitchatting and talking about the cricket match they watched at the stadium. His grandfather told them that he was sitting in front of the television set to see if he could get a glimpse of them in the spectator's crowd but he couldn't locate them; to which the boys were not only touched but said that next time we would go together to watch a cricket match.

The next day they headed for the sight-seeing of the village and while strolling through the village greenland, one of his friend Akash was bitten by a snake. He felt the bite and was about to faint, the boy's got terrified as they had no idea as to what they should do. The boy's started calling the locals for help as all were very panicked. A local passerby who had the idea of preliminary treatment suggested them to stay calm and help him to shift the boy to the open area and make him lie down. He used a piece of cloth to tie above the place where the snake had bitten to prevent the poison from spreading. In the meanwhile, Raghu had called his grandfather and asked him to send the vehicle as they would require help to take him to the nearest hospital. Akash was sinking, but the local guy told them to keep him conscious and keep on talking to him. They rushed him to the nearest hospital. He also asked them to remove his wristband and watch etc. so that there occurs no swelling during the transportation time or else the poison could spread.

What is the preliminary first-aid during a snake bite?

One should remain calm and move from the snake's striking distance to a location which is clear and planar whereby the patient can be made to lie down.
Remove any jewelry or tight clothing before it starts to swell.
Position the patient, if possible, such that the bite is at or below the level of your heart so that the poison shouldn't rush towards the heart.
The wound should be cleaned, but water shouldn't be used to flush. Cover the site of the snake bites with a clean, dry cloth for dressing.

Caution:

Do not use a tourniquet nor try to apply ice.
Do not cut open the wound or attempt to remove the venom by sucking.
Don't drink tea, coffee as it contains caffeine nor alcohol, which could speed the body's absorption of venom.
Try to remember the color and shape of the snake so that one can describe it to the healthcare professional, which will help in the treatment.
Symptoms:

Most snakebites occur on the extremities. If a nonvenomous snake has bitten then, the typical symptoms are pain and scratch at the site of the snakebite.

If a poisonous snake has bitten a patient, there is severe burning and pain at the site, within 15 to 30 minutes. This can progress to swelling and bruising at the wound, and all the way up the arm or leg. Other symptoms may include nausea, vomiting and a general sense of weakness, as well as an odd taste in the mouth.

Some snakes, such as coral snakes, have toxins that cause neurological symptoms, such as tingling, difficulty speaking and weakness.

Faster access to medical care in a healthcare facility that has personnel trained and one who is capable of diagnosing the snakebite and envenoming is an essential factor for saving a person. This also means a health center which is equipped with the basic resources needed to provide immediate emergency treatment to the patient, including the administration of antivenom and other adjunct therapy.

The person bitten by a snake or if someone suspects that the other person has been bitten by a venomous snake should be transported to a health facility at the earliest possible. First aid should be applied. Traditional medicines and usage of other treatments such as wound incision or excision, suction, or application of "black stones" should be avoided.

A makeshift stretcher was used to carry Akash to a place where the vehicle had arrived to take him to a health facility. They carried him to the nearby healthcare center where the doctor initiated the preliminary treatment. His condition was critical when he arrived but the healthcare authorities acted fast and initiated the treatment just in time. Akash’s parents were contacted and were updated about the incidence. His father was a healthcare professional. They wanted to get back Akash, from the local hospital to Delhi hospital immediately.

Mr. Narang, his father got in touch with Hi-Flying aviation. One of his colleagues had earlier used their services for air transporting his mother from Bihar to New Delhi and was extremely happy with their services. The company arranged to fly Mr. Narang and his wife in an air-ambulance to Chennai. They had initiated symptomatic treatment including support of airway and breathing, circulation and control of bleeding was being monitored. But the hospital was short of the antivenom. The doctor contacted his father and recommended to carry the prescribed antivenom. The patient was stable now due to the preliminary treatment provided.

His parents arrived at the hospital and the antivenom was administered through the intravenous method. The patient was out of danger and all were relieved but to ensure he gets better care, they opted to fly back Akash in an air ambulance to New Delhi, and further treatment and post-diagnosis were carried out to check for the well being of the patient.

Air ambulance services were once rarely used but now it is gaining popularity in India too due to the better private service provider being available in the country. Hi-Flying provides its services round the clock in India and abroad and have handled such emergency cases with their personal touch and thorough professionalism. Akash is now discharged, fit and fine, ready to play cricket with his friend's again.