Emergency life support programmes emphasised

Experts at the opening session of the American Heart Association (AHA) course at Al Qasimi Hospital urged the need for emergency life support programmes.

Only five per cent of sudden cardiac arrest victims survive because of lack of knowledge about emergency life support techniques.

"A better training and knowledge of such courses can help save lives of a larger number of patients with cardiac or respiratory arrest," they added.

Opening the course, Sheikh Mohammed bin Saqr Al Qasimi, Assistant Undersecretary in the Ministry of Health and Director of Sharjah Medical District, asserted the need to provide continuous training to medical staff including doctors and nurses to improve health-care services.

He said: "Cardiac arrest is the most acute medical emergency faced by doctors, nurses and the paramedical staff."

He noted that without providing adequate training and refresher courses, Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) is often poorly performed, often risking the life of a patient.

"Even the non-medical community by getting life support training can learn how to save the life of a family member, a friend or a co-worker before the patient reaches a hospital," he said.

Sheikh Mohammed said the need for taking up such courses was felt in the wake of an increasing number of cases of cardiac arrest reported in the hospitals.

"Some 90 cases of cardiac arrest due to various reasons, were recorded only in Al Qasimi Hospital, in addition to 78 similar cases outside the hospital, since January this year," he revealed.

Ashok Chaturvedi, President of International Business Consult (IBC) the organising company of the Emergency Life Support Prog-ramme of the AHA, said the course is aimed at providing life support education to the UAE medical and non-medical community.

The course offered at Al Qasimi Hospital is called the Basic Life Support For Health-care Providers and around 100 doctors took part.

Saad E. Abbas, training coordinator, said: "The BLS-HC course is taught strictly according to the guidelines certified by the Amer-ican Heart Association instructors. The successful candidates then undergo Advanced Cardiovascular Life Support training." A team of highly qualified U.S. trained instru-ctors, led by an instructor from the U.S., conducted these courses.

Dr Mir Ali, one of the instructors, said the first five to 10 minutes are very vital to save a life in cardio arrest or in any emergency situation especially when a patient does not have access to medical equipment.

"Chances of saving a life in such emergency situations are much higher if someone at the business, at home or any other place has the knowledge and acquired training of emergency life support," he noted.

Dr Abdullah Al Haji, consultant cardiologist at the hospital, highlighting the importance of such courses, said one can recognise and respond to life threatening emergencies and save life by taking up such courses.