As in many other developing countries, emergency medical services, especially pre-hospital emergency care, has long been neglected in Pakistan. Consequently, patients are brought to the emergency departments by relatives or bystanders in private cars, taxis or any other readily available mode of transportation. Ambulances, where they exist, have barely a stretcher and arrangements for oxygen supply. Modern emergency services are considered too costly for many countries. A model of pre-hospital emergency services, called Rescue 1122 and established in Punjab province of Pakistan, is presented. The system is supported by government funding and provides a quality service. The article describes the process of establishment of the service, the organisational structure, the scope of services and the role it is currently playing in the healthcare of the region it serves.

The aim of this study was to compare the efficacy and safety of an oral enzyme-rutosid combination (ERC) containing rutosid and the enzymes bromelain and trypsin, with that of diclofenac in patients with osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee. A total of 103 patients presenting with painful episodes of OA of the knee were treated for 6 weeks in two study centers in a randomized, double-blind, parallel group trial. Altogether, 52 patients were treated in the ERC group and 51 patients were treated in the diclofenac group. Primary efficacy criteria were Lequesne's Algofunctional Index (LFI) and a 'complaint index', including pain at rest, pain on motion and restricted function. The efficacy criteria were analyzed by applying the Wilcoxon-Mann-Whitney test that provides the Mann-Whitney estimator (MW) as a measure of relevance. Non-inferiority was considered to be proven if the lower bound of the 97.5% one-sided confidence interval (CI-LB) was higher than MW = 0.36 (benchmark of not yet relevant inferiority). Both treatments resulted in clear improvements. Within the 6-week observation period, the mean value of the LFI decreased from 13.0 to 9.4 in the ERC group and from 12.5 to 9.4 in the diclofenac group. Non-inferiority of ERC was demonstrated by both primary criteria, LFI (MW = 0.5305; CI-LB = 0.4171) and complaint index (MW = 0.5434; CI-LB = 0.4296). Considerable improvements were also seen in secondary efficacy criteria, with a slight tendency towards superiority of ERC. The global judgment of efficacy by physician resulted in at least good ratings for 51.4% of the ERC patients, and for 37.2% of the diclofenac patients. In the majority of patients tolerability was judged in both drug groups as very good or good. The current study indicates that ERC can be considered as an effective and safe alternative to NSAIDs such as diclofenac in the treatment of painful episodes of OA of the knee. Placebo-controlled studies are now needed to confirm these results.

BackgroundA major incident is defined as an event that owing to the number of casualties has the potential to overwhelm the available resources. This paper attempts to describe the incidence and epidemiology of major incidents dealt with by a government-run emergency medical service (EMS) in the Punjab province of Pakistan, a developing country in South Asia. A major incident in this EMS is defined as any incident that produces three or more patients, or any incident in which extraordinary resources are needed.MethodsAll the calls received by an EMS Rescue 1122 were studied over a 6-month period. Calls that were defined as major incidents were identified, and further details were sought from the districts regarding these incidents. Questions specifically asked were the type of incident, time of the incident, response time for the incident, the resources needed, and the number of dead and injured casualties. Retrospective data were collected from the submitted written reports.ResultsRoad traffic crashes (RTCs) emerged as the leading cause of a major incident in the province of Punjab and also led to the greatest number of casualties, followed by fire incidents. The total number of casualties was 3,380, out of which 73.7% were RTC victims. There was a high rate of death on the scene (10.4%). Certain other causes of major incidents also emerged, including violence, gas explosions and drowning.ConclusionRoad traffic crashes are the most common cause of a major incident in developing countries such as Pakistan. Injury prevention initiatives need to focus on RTCs.

Objectives Strengthened EMS systems are urgently required in South Asia to reduce needless death and disability. Several EMS models have been introduced in India and Pakistan, and research on these models can facilitate improvements to EMS in the region. Our objective was to conduct a cross-case comparative analysis of three EMS organizations in India and Pakistan – GVK EMRI, Aman Foundation and Rescue 1122 – in order to draw out similarities and differences in their models. Study Design Case study methodology was used to systematically explore the organizational models of GVK EMRI (Karnataka, India), Aman Foundation (Karachi, Pakistan), and Rescue 1122 (Punjab, Pakistan). Methods Qualitative methods – interviews, document review and non-participant observation – were utilized, and using a process of constant comparison, data were analyzed across cases according to the WHO health system ‘building blocks’. Results Emergent themes under each health system ‘building block’ of service delivery, health workforce, medical products and technology, health information systems, leadership and governance, and financing were described. Cross-cutting issues not applicable to any single building block were further identified. Conclusions This cross-case comparison, the first of its kind in low- and middle-income countries, highlights key innovations and lessons, and areas of further research across EMS organizations in India, Pakistan and other resource-poor settings.