22/04/2026
Standardising pre-hospital care – PHC’s guidelines for safe ambulance services
The ‘Standardized Guidelines for Ambulance Services’, developed by the Punjab Healthcare Commission in consultation with all key stakeholders, aim to bring consistency and quality to the pre-hospital care. They focus on the assessment and initial management of injured or ill patients by trained paramedics or rescue workers, from pickup at the incident site through safe transport to the appropriate health facility for definitive treatment.
The Guidelines define the responsibilities of ambulance service management for maintaining service quality, regularly monitoring service delivery, reviewing records, ensuring staff training and competency, safeguarding patient privacy and rights, and ensuring equipment is properly functioning. They also require a formal quality assurance system with clear SOPs and clinical/operational protocols for call receipt, triage and assessment, patient handover, medicine management and informed or implied consent. As the first guidelines of their kind, they set minimum requirements for ambulance specifications, equipment and logistics for patient transport and rescue, aligned with notifications of the Punjab Emergency Services Department and the registration requirements under the Punjab Emergency Service Act 2006.