Illegal first aid facilities face tough penalties

The days of unrecognised and unaccredited first aid training service providers are numbered, the Dubai Corporation of Ambulance Services (DCAS) has warned.Dr Omar Al Sakaf, Emergency Medical Services Consultant and Technical Support Management Manager of DCAS, said that there will be a crackdown on unlicensed and unaccredited first aid training providers as soon as the law that will penalise these facilities is enacted this year."There will be fines, there will be shutting down of facilities, revoking of the licences, all sorts of steps," Dr Al Sakaf told Gulf News, adding that the penalty will depend on the kind of violation.DCAS is the government agency that inspects and licenses all first aid training providers. It is also authorised to accredit facilities and train individuals and institutions in life-saving skills. The warning follows reports that many unlicensed or unaccredited service providers have sprung up in Dubai."Many nurses, doctors, housewives with previous nursing or first aid experience can be found to be offering training on social websites, through their children's school and nursery schools. Paramedics working for private ambulance services and many others are delivering these courses even if they have no recognition in this region as they are not registered," Robert Chandler, managing director of First International Training, told Gulf News.DCAS maintains that only 29 facilities are currently recognised and accredited by them. "You can do any emergency first aid procedure on a basic level but you have to be certified from an authorised centre. Otherwise, you'll be in trouble..." Dr Al Sakaf said."We don't know the information that these service providers have. We don't know which system they are using. You may be in danger by giving wrong first aid. You will be sued for that and you will kill someone without knowing it," Dr Al Sakaf added.In the UAE, once someone tries to save a person's life and in the process fails, he may end up in jail. But Dr Al Sakaf said that this will soon be a thing of the past. "We are working to get the Samaritan Law in Dubai and hope that this law will be executed in Dubai. We may be the first to have that law in the Middle East and GCC countries," hesaid.The good samaritan law or doctrine provides protection to a first aid provider from any legal problems that life-saving efforts may ensue. The doctrine was put in place in most countries to prevent strangers from becoming apprehensive in helping injured people for fears of being sued for "wrongdoing".Dr Omar Al Sakaf, Emergency Medical Services Consultant and Technical Support Management Manager of Dubai Corporation of Ambulance Services (DCAS), has warned the public against misusing the ambulance services in Dubai.Recently, in a day, of the 238 cases dealt with by DCAS, 40 were dropped calls or calls which were discontinued or made unnecessarily.