Currently, the Ministry of Health is still seeking opinions on the Draft Circular providing guidance on the organization and activities for emergency response to traffic accidents on expressways.
Article table of contents
Draft Circular provides several regulations on emergency response activities for traffic accidents on the highway network including first aid, emergency services, care, and transportation for persons involved in traffic accidents or those needing urgent medical assistance on the highway network.
One of the top requirements for emergency response activities in general and traffic accident emergency response in particular is the principle:
- Ensure rapid, prompt, and effective response;- Comply with medical expertise in emergency services;- Adhere to the direction of competent authority;- Simultaneously ensure close coordination between relevant agencies and units in victim rescue.
According to the Draft Circular, the network of facilities for rescue operations on highways includes emergency stations distributed at locations at least 50km apart. Each emergency station is independently organized or integrated with nearby medical facilities such as: commune health stations, district health centers, emergency center 115, public hospitals, and private hospitals.
When conducting emergency activities for patients, promptly report information about the accident victim such as name, age, address, and relevant medical indices concerning the health status of the traffic accident victim or the patient needing urgent medical assistance to the route traffic operation center;
In cases where, due to objective reasons, it is not possible to contact the route traffic operation center, promptly notify patient information to the regional traffic accident emergency operation center.
First aid and emergency activities are carried out in accordance with the regulations in Decision 01/2008/QD-BYT. For traffic accident victims with health insurance cards, transportation costs for patients, first aid, and emergency services are carried out in accordance with the regulations in Circular 40/2015/TT-BYT.
For cases where traffic accident victims or patients needing urgent medical examination and treatment do not have health insurance cards, the medical examination and treatment facility has the right to charge fees for patient transportation activities, first aid, emergency services, and medical examination and treatment.
