Islamabad - A speeding ambulance with its wailing siren and flashing xenon strobe light is a telltale sign that someone needing immediate medical attention is being ferried to a medical facility. The patient might be a woman in childbirth or an accident victim bleeding heavily or a heart patient dropping his heart beats with every passing second.

With beads of sweat streaking down their faces, the attendants fasten their eyes onto the patient and find their heartbeat sinking and bodies draining of energy and mobility with every passing second due to the fear of losing their loved ones anytime.

The driver, occasionally, looks over his shoulders to size up the situation and with every look, he steps on the gas to reach the nearest possible medical facility before the patient loses his/her battle for life.

If this scene occurs in some developed country of the world, the safe bet is that the patient will reach the desired destination, facing no hurdle, obstruction or hindrance on the road.

On the contrary, if this situation occurs in Pakistan, especially, in a densely populated area like Karachi, the patient’s chances of survival get dim, as the disorderly traffic on roads, absence of traffic cops on major roads and highways and above all the clinical indifference of public, especially of habitually unruly, uneducated and thick-skinned public transport drivers, to the wailing of siren defies all this struggle to save a human life who may be the only breadwinner of a family.

Keeping this environment of indifference to the plight of fellow citizens and promote the right of way and respect for ambulances, in 2016 the International Committee of Red Cross [ICRC] in collaboration with Pakistan Red Crescent Society (PRCS) and other partners launched a campaign titled #RastaDein: “Ambulance ko rasta dein, is may aap ka koi apna ho sakta hay”. The campaign, focusing on Karachi, was successfully carried out, receiving an overwhelming response from the general public. The campaign’s impact, measured through an observational study, stood at a promising 17 per cent. This showed that motorists are responsive when exposed to positive messages and communications.

Encouraged by the response, the ICRC together with its partners is launching a three-month nationwide campaign titled #PehlayZindagi under the slogan ‘Give Way to Ambulance, Give Way to Life’.  The campaign will run from October to December this year. The mobilization of grassroots civil society networks and the resources of ICRC and its partners in the country will allow combining the campaign with mass scale direct community outreach.

Rescue 1122, Aman Foundation, Edhi Foundation, Pakistan Red Crescent Society, The Indus Hospital, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Jinnah Sindh Medical University, Khyber Medical University, Isra University, University of Health Sciences, Pakistan State Oil, traffic police and the city administrations of Karachi, Lahore, Peshawar, twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi and civil society partners are contributing resources and assets to the campaign in order to highlight the humanitarian message.

Keeping pace with the ICRC in its endeavour to save human lives by educating the general public about their rights over the fellow citizens, the Pakistan Red Crescent Society [PRCS] has established the country’s first ever National Ambulance Services College at the National Headquarters, Islamabad.

–The writer is Principal Information Officer at the Pakistan Red Crescent Society, Islamabad.