Cardiac ambulance to roll out before Kumbh

NASHIK: The civic body's cardiac and trauma ambulance, which had been gathering dust at its vehicle workshop near Panchavati divisional office for two years due to lack of appointment of medical staff, is likely to becomes operational shortly.
The Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) is planning to outsource the staff for the ambulance from a Pune-based private firm and make the vehicle operational before Kumbh Mela.
The NMC had bought the ambulance at Rs 40 lakh for the first time to provide immediate medical services to cardiac patients. The ambulance was launched in September 2012. But the lack of appointment of medical staff for the ambulance by the civic administration had led to the ambulance lying idle at the vehicle workshop.
An NMC official said the ambulance was meant to serve cardiac patients to provide immediate services in a transit hours. "Such ambulances require trained medical staff. A team of four staff members - a medical officer, driver, nurse and a helper - is needed in one shift. We needed a staff of 12 for three shifts - four medical officers, four drivers, four nurses and four helpers. We also urged the civic administration for the staff recruitment, but it did not. This was the reason the cardiac ambulance could not function so far."