JEDDAH, 29 December 2005 — Expressing a common frustration among ambulance drivers, Mahmoud Al-Otaibi said that drivers do not take emergency workers seriously when they are driving to save people’s lives.
“I find myself forced to push the car in front of me with my bumper because some people refuse to get out of the way. Even with my sirens on, some ignorant people take it as an excuse to start racing with me and blocking the way,” Al-Otaibi, former ambulance driver and nurse assistant at a government hospital, told Arab News.
Abdul Rahman Al-Omair told Al-Madinah Arabic daily recently that there’s nothing new about this naive habit, a result of a lack of awareness and an increase in the number of reckless drivers in the Kingdom.
Al-Omair said part of the solution would include better public transportation, such as trains, more busses, or even a light rail or subway system.
“People want to get rid of traffic by any means possible. One of these means involves driving behind ambulances when the sirens are on,” said Al-Omair.
He said that he has witnessed many accidents involving cars driving behind ambulances.
“The oncoming traffic gives time for the ambulance to drive but does not pay attention to the cars driving behind it, which results in accidents,” he said.
Dr. Ahmad Abdul Munim, head of ER at the Saudi-German Hospitals Group (SGHG), told Arab News that ambulance drivers are supposed to be aware of some procedures regarding handling different type of accidents, and underlined the importance of respect by drivers to the lives these workers are trying to save.
“Usually a doctor and a nurse accompany the driver, and they are the only people who can move the injured patients without harming them. They know what to do and what special procedures to follow according to the injury,” he said.
The doctor said it is vitally important that drivers learn to yield to ambulances. “People must have faith in what we are doing,” said Al-Otaibi. “We also request support and more respect from the people to the patient who is in need for rescue.”
