Doha, October 25 (QNA) - The ambulance service at Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) received the approval of the Joint Commission International (JCI) after passing a series of tests and inspection procedures by the committee's delegates last September to verify the application of international standards for patient safety. The Ambulance Service is one of the few In the world you get this outstanding credit.

HMC's Ambulance Service Chief Executive Officer Dr. Robert Owen expressed his pride in the performance of the staff working in the ambulance service, noting that as one of the leading international institutions in the assessment and accreditation of medical facilities and services in the world, JCI's accreditation is a formal recognition of applying the highest standards of safety in the transport and evacuation of patients and injured in HMC.

He added that in previous JCI Medical Transport Organization assessments, the ambulance service was required to meet 73 standards. This latest assessment was by far the most stringent appraisal of quality and safety in the service's history, with 134 standards and 479 measurable elements, he said.

This is the third time that the HMC ambulance service has been accredited by JCI. The first accreditation was in 2011 and was followed for the second time in 2014. The commission provides medical facilities that pass the relevant standards tests with an international certificate of performance Professional excellence of these facilities.

Ali Darwish, assistant executive director of the ambulance service, said the service has made significant improvements in a wide range of areas since it was adopted the previous time. He added that as an ambulance service, "we are on a continual journey to provide the very highest standards of emergency response care" to the people of Qatar. "Our recent advances include the introduction of high-tech major incident vehicles and 4x4s customized for desert response, as well as the full rollout of dispatch points across the country." "We have also introduced advanced technology systems such as our telemetry system, which allows paramedics to transmit vital information quickly to the hospitals for heart attack patients," said Darwish.

These achievements have been made while caring for an increasing number of patients each year. Despite this growing demand, the service continues to meet its National Health Strategy response time targets for both calls within Doha as well as outside the capital city. (QNA)