Summer heat is aggravating delays in the delivery of ambulance services, which already are lagging due to a shortage of first aid doctors and the city's rising number of elderly, Shanghai Medical Emergency Center officials said June 17.
The problem is more acute in the summer, since the heat is likely to make those with cardiovascular and respiratory diseases feel ill. Recent hot weather has boosted the daily average of calls dispatched by the center to 1,000 per day, and morning requests for service are rising quickly.
A shortage of doctors, not vehicles, is the main problem, the center said. Many first-aid doctors quit due to low pay, a heavy workload and pressure, and an unpromising career track. The center was intensely criticized since an 88-year-old man died while waiting for an ambulance on Sunday. The family posted a picture of him collapsed on a chair to protest the slow service. |
