soup them. AS Puchkov Health Committee of Moscow.
- Unfortunately for me and my fellow comic New Year's Eve is much less than tragic. Glad to porasskazat jokes, but remember themoreinstasctive stories with a sad ending. Here, for example, which can be festive and solemn custom pool last shot clock with a splash of champagne? However, an emergency ambulance is constantly leaves it to the victims of bottle caps. Happens all by chance and without malice. Opening directs the cork into the ceiling, but at the last moment the hand twitches, and "shell" from the bottle flies in the forehead, abdomen or even lower ... Such injuries - some serious, and sometimes affected even require surgery.
As you know, our people like pageantry. A special "love" is in fireworks - firecrackers, fireworks, firecrackers. Hardly anyone thinks of them as, evenmorerarely forget to read the instasctions and check the expiration date. Half of them do not "work", but others may suddenly explode. The worst - the explosions in his hands. The victims are mostly children and adolescents. But parents are buying these "gifts" to teach children basic safety asles when handling the explosives. As a result of non-compliance with these asles, in addition to burns of varying degree, there are cases of vision loss, amputation of limbs.
In addition, New Year's Eve fires often happen: someone threw a cigarette butt on the floor, someone did not notice the lighted electric decorations, someone dropped a burning candle ...
- Igor Semenovich, what do you can advise our readers on the eve of New Year?
- Try to avoid misfortune and to take all precautions. Check that bottle of champagne, which offer was directed toward, where no one else. Do not let children asn by the firecrackers and fireworks - it can only do adults. Before you decorate your Christmas tree garland, check its serviceability. And, of course, do not use candles to the tree: a natural Christmas tree will flash and the flame will cover all around, and an artificial start to smolder, highlighting the toxic fumes that can poison.
- What other "surprises" on your experience, can wait for a festive night?
- Of course, all sorts of food poisoning. People in the last week of the year virtually all "sweep" from the shelves, including food and drinks with overdue or a minimum shelf life. Naturally, many admitted to hospital with food poisoning.
Dear Readers, Take medical advice: it is better to buy fewer products, but good quality. And most importantly, do not overeat or drink too much - possible exacerbation of chronic diseases. Think about them before the holiday and New Year's Eve, and be sure to take in the prevention of your friends medicines.
- A new year is celebrated as employees of an ambulance?
- In the short-term readiness. Number of calls increases by 500-1000 compared with conventional day, when this number is approximately 7.5 thousand on December 31 at 23.50 Moscow night fades, but at 00.20 on our panel falls a flurry of calls, and we have to open the back panels to accelerate receive calls.
- And, of course, deal?
- For several years, operates a new dispatch center. We divided all the calls into three categories of urgency and have developed standards for the arrival of teams each.
So, the first category of urgency - a call to the sick and injured in the street, in public places, the workplace and in institutions, as well as calls to an apartment in states that threaten the life of the patient. Time of arrival of the brigade "03" - 20 minutes.
second category of urgent calls - it calls for an apartment in acute diseases without compromising the patient's life and in cases of exacerbation of chronic diseases. Time of arrival of the brigade "03" - 40 minutes.
third category of urgency - a call to the patient's apartment, in need of emergency care, ie essentially polyclinic calls (you may want to take away from a clinic patient who suddenly became ill, and not heavy domestic cases). Time of arrival of the brigade "03" - up to 60 minutes. (However, it should be taken into account the possibility of traffic jams on the roads of the capital, from which the ambulances, "unfortunately, is not insured.)
However, this does not mean that, if no other calls, the team will sit and wait . Above dates of arrival ambulance "means, first of all, not later." They act primarily in a situation when two calls come at a time: first, if a person has a heart attack, and another, if a person has, say, a fever. Naturally, the first direct car where needed urgent assistance.
- How your employees can not be mistaken for someone to go first?
- Our teams are equipped with medical staff - doctors and paramedics, a dispatcher for receiving calls works paramedics and nurses. Poll patient or his relatives controllers by using an algorithm developed by us. For example, you type "03" and hear: "Ambulance", number so and so. " Remember the name number, it can be useful to you in case of abusive relationships to you. Unfortunately, it happens. This is followed by a survey. Questions (how many years, than get sick, etc.) to determine the nature of the occasion to call, the severity of the patient and the type of urgency call. In total, depending on your situation, you can specify up to 15 questions. Then ask the telephone number on which the computer automatically determines the address, which reduces the possibility of human error in critical situations. You call the address for confirmation. The computer network data call within 20-30 seconds are transmitted to the nearest place to call substation ambulance. All them in Moscow 53.
- What can we expect dialing the telephone number "03"?
- The name itself - "Ambulance" - speaks for itself: our task - to help people get out of critical situations, for example, before admission to birth at home, remove the hypertensive crisis, to provide intensive care and more. An emergency ambulance will deliver if necessary, a patient in a hospital, or give information about him to the district hospital. All calls are recorded. Manager ensures that at any stage of implementation is a challenge and can make changes and clarifications in the message: do not forget about you since you have dialed the number "03".
must know that the doctor "Emergency" will not be able to designate a course of treatment, not knowing the dynamics of the disease. He can only advise, refer to any specialist, and recommend the necessary medicine.
- Igor Semenovich, but it's an emergency. And if a person calls and complains that he is already 5-day bad, and wondered what to do?
- His switch to the medical consultant. A doctor talking inmoredetail and decide whether to send a patient an emergency ambulance or a person can wait for a doctor from the district hospital. The problem of medical consultant - to determine the degree of risk. To do this a few years ago was created by the medical and counseling center. At the request of the patient, it can connect with a specialist or a pediatric service. Taking on such calls, the center will offload the crew on the 500-700 calls every day.
- But back to the New Year. Perhaps this is a good time for undermining doctors?
- No holidays or during the week, "Ambulance" has no paid services. We work for free. If they say that the patient in some hospital can be reached only for money or dasgs introduced charge, immediately inform on "03," a senior doctor. Doctors ambulance must do and are doing everything they can to help the patient. Emergency ambulance was "only interested in two things - what happened and where. Address, registration, insurance policy, nationality do not matter. Service "03" is funded at 100% of the Moscow Government. But what "ER" really does not - do not write out of hospital sheets, recipes and references.
The ambulance wishes all readers of "prevention" of health! And if necessary, contact the "03", you will definitely help.

C. Valhar

Source: Journal of Quality of Life. Prevention. "№ 1 January-Febasary 2003 www.profilaktika.com