New Delhi: Acknowledging the impact of Blinkit’s ambulance service on public healthcare, a professor in neurosurgery at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)’s trauma centre praised the fast response of the ambulance service after witnessing it first-hand.
Dr Deepak Agrawal took to LinkedIn to express his admiration for the private company’s initiative, calling it “the healthcare revolution India has been waiting for”.
Recently, Blinkit’s ambulance service, officially launched in January this year, was involved in the transfer of a trauma patient to AIIMS. The service caught the eye of the medical professional for its efficiency and emphasis on pre-hospital care, an aspect still missing in India’s emergency response situations, according to Dr Deepak Agrawal.
In a post shared on LinkedIn, Dr Agrawal recounted how a patient brought in by Blinkit’s ambulance was given life-saving treatment on the way to the hospital. “This is the kind of service we used to read about and see in developed countries…,” he said, commending the paramedics for their quick response, professionalism, and adherence to medical protocols during transport.
In the post, Dr Deepak Agrawal noted that the AIIMS trauma centre received a patient brought in by Blinkit ambulance services. He lauded the professionalism of the paramedic staff who were with the patient in the ambulance on the way to the hospital. He noted that the team ensured the patient was stabilised, among other things—“C-spine stablized with hard cervical collar”, “Suctioning done for excessive secretions”, “Started on NRBM for low room air saturation”, “Rt lower limb splinted for suspected fracture”, “Tranexa 1 gm given as low BP documented in the ambulance monitor”, “1 L RL given”, “Placed pt in spine board”.
Dr Deepak Agrawal told ThePrint that typically, trauma patients arriving at AIIMS are brought in either by police vehicles or bystanders, with ambulances often acting only as patient transport vehicles, not providing critical medical care on the way to the hospital.
However, Blinkit’s ambulance service, as Dr Agrawal noted, bucked this trend by implementing proper emergency protocols such as airway management with cervical spine support (C-spine), breathing checks, circulation monitoring, and IV fluid administration.
“All these standard pre-hospital care protocols were followed, and the patient was stabilised for immediate medical attention upon arrival,” Dr Agrawal said, adding that the team even used a checklist—a method he had observed in developed countries like the US and Canada. “It is a real revolution in what is actually there on the ground.”
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What made the experience especially notable was that the ambulance service offered something rare in India’s emergency medical response system: well-trained paramedics and a focus on the patient’s immediate needs during the journey.
“It was refreshing to see such protocols being followed, and it made a significant difference in the patient’s outcome,” Dr Deepak Agrawal said. His post went viral on LinkedIn, garnering praise from both medical professionals and ordinary citizens who applauded the innovation.
Since the launch of the service, the financial cost of using such services has been an open question, as social media users have been pointing towards the price of the ambulance service.
Dr Agrawal, however, said that when it comes to saving lives, the cost is secondary. “Life is priceless,” he said. “In an emergency, the last thing on your mind is the money,” he said.
A promotional image that was shared online by Blinkit CEO Albinder Dhindsa showed a flat fee of Rs 2,000 for the ambulance service, along with warnings that the service did not support neonatal or ventilator care. Dhindsa also shared photos of uniformed Blinkit staff with the ambulances.
ThePrint has reached Blinkit for a comment. The report will be updated if and when a response is received.
An alternative
The ambulance service comes at a time when India’s emergency response infrastructure is under intense scrutiny. Historically, India’s emergency medical system has faced challenges ranging from poor infrastructure to a shortage of trained paramedics, especially in non-metropolitan areas.
Blinkit’s initiative has the potential to address these issues by setting new standards for pre-hospital care, offering a much-needed alternative to the outdated models of emergency transport that have long been the norm.
According to data published in a Research Gate report, the number of ambulances in India increased by 57.5 percent from 2012 to 2022. “Although the accessibility of referral services has improved, there is a significant gap in delivering timely in-transit service,” the report noted.
The 10-minute ambulance service has so far been launched in Gurugram. The company is planning to expand the service to other cities in India over the next two years, according to Dhindsa, who announced it on X on 2 January.
Dhindsa said that the ambulances would have medical equipment such as oxygen cylinders, AEDs (automated external defibrillators), stretchers, monitors, suction machines, emergency medicines, and injections. The ambulance will come with a paramedic, an assistant, and a trained driver.
“Profit is not a goal here. We will operate this service at an affordable cost for customers and invest in really solving this critical problem for the long term,” said Dhindsa, adding, “We are carefully scaling this service up, as it is both important and new to us. Our aim is to expand to all major cities over the next two years. Let’s do our bit and make way for an ambulance always. You never know when you may save a life.”
While the first five ambulances will immediately take to the roads of Gurugram, more users will be able to book a basic life support (BLS) ambulance through the Blinkit app.
Dr Agrawal said that there was a need for increased competition in the sector in order to foster innovation, which could elevate the quality of pre-hospital care across India. “If other players can step in and offer similarly high-quality services, it will only improve the system as a whole.”
(Edited by Radifah Kabir)
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