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TRAFFICINFRATECH EXPO 2024




                                               What are the most common          accidents after sundown are caused
                                               challenges faced during the       by driver drowsiness or intoxication.
                                               golden hour in traffic-related    Strict enforcement during the
                                               emergencies?                      evening and night hours would
                                                                                 prove to be fruitful in reducing these
                                                Traffic  related emergencies in   emergencies.
                                               India have become a public health
                                               problem because they often result in   What role do you think
                                               injuries, and many of these injuries   technology and data play in
                                               are serious in nature. The first   improving outcomes during
                                               challenge we face after an accident   the golden hour following
                                               has occurred on the road is the   traffic accidents?
                                               access to first aid and/or ambulance
                                               services.  The  pre-hospital  care  in   I think the main issue is data.
                                               our country is still in its infancy. It is   Including the data supplied by the
                                               developed probably in bigger cities,   police- the absolute data of mortality
                                               but in the rural and semi-urban areas,   and the data available in the
                                               the ambulance services are either   hospitals. How many patients have
                                               unavailable or are underdeveloped.   been brought to the hospital, what
                                               The second challenge is that access   kind of injuries they presented, were
                                               number for the ambulance services   they treated in the right manner
                                               is not universal. In cities, it might   during the golden hour and which
                                               be 108 for ambulance services but   are  the hospitals they visited? All
                                               on the highways, there are multiple   this data capture is essential, and
                                               numbers provided by the various   therefore India needs to have what
                                               concessionaires and therefore it   is known as a trauma registry.
                                               becomes difficult for anybody to    The use of technology in terms of
                                               contact the ambulance services.   artificial intelligence can be helpful.
                                               Ferrying accident victims to hospitals   I can foresee a future in which the
                                               in time is a major hurdle as the pre-  roadside cameras, or the highway
                                               hospital care ambulances may not   cameras can capture an accident and
                                               be well-equipped along with trained   automatically report that accident
                                               manpower.                         to a nearby hospital or to the
                                                Within the hospital, during the   ambulance workers directly without
                                               golden hour, there may be a lack of   any human interface. This would
                                               well-trained nurses, paramedics and   reduce the time of pre-hospital care
                                               doctors to efficiently take care of   and improve the outcomes for the
                                               patients posing the third significant   trauma patients.
                                               challenge. Training manpower in
                                               trauma care is a constant struggle.  Are there specific protocols or
                                                                                 guidelines that are effective
                                               How do you think the time of      during response to trauma
                                               day or the weather conditions     care emergencies?
                                               impact road accidents?
                                                                                   There are multiple policies and
                                                Most of the road traffic accident   medical protocols. One of them is
                                               injuries are occurring after sundown   called Pre-hospital Care Protocol,
                                               and during late nights. There are   or Pre-hospital Trauma Life Support
                                               issues with lighting and the weather   Protocol. Then there are other
                                               conditions. Whenever it is overcast,   protocols within the hospital.
                                               visibility is low, which leads to an   For example, triage protocols
                                               increase in road traffic accidents and   that offer a way to categorize
                                               injuries. We have noticed that many   the patients according to their


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