National Ambulance Fleet and Territory to Expand in Northern Emirates

Abu Dhabi, 22 December 2015: National Ambulance is expanding its emergency pre-hospital service provision by adding 20 modern Mercedes ambulances to its existing fleet along with new locations distributed across the Northern Emirates. The expansion in fleet size and territory marks the beginning of phase three for National Ambulance, which will take effect immediately, bringing the total number of ambulances to 50 up from the current deployment of 30. In addition, the current number of locations where ambulances will be stationed will also be increasing, bringing the total number from 30 to 50.

This development follows an extensive analysis of data including; demographics, population density, traffic flows, volume of incidents and calls to National Ambulance Communication Centre in addition to meeting the response time target. Since National Ambulance commenced operations in the Northern Emirates in February 2014, the number of its stations of operation has more than doubled from an initial 20 to the 50 which will be deployed as part of the expansion.

Ahmed Saleh Al Hajeri, Deputy CEO of National Ambulance said: “This marks another significant milestone in National Ambulance growth strategy and reflects our commitment towards enhancing performance and emergency response efficiency to meet the growing needs of the communities in which we operate. The regular studies our team conduct follow international best practice and enable us to identify and respond to trends related to the demands on the ambulance service across Northern Emirates. As a result of this analysis we have taken a number of measures to enhance the efficiency and quality of the emergency response service we deliver to the community by doubling the size of our fleet and increasing our presence around hot spots and areas of high demand.”

As with National Ambulance’s existing fleet of vehicles, the new ambulances are fully consistent with international standards and equipped with the latest high-tech medical equipment. Also, the modern ambulances are adapted for UAE weather conditions and driving on difficult roads in remote regions.

National Ambulance commenced operations in the Northern Emirates on February of last year to provide round-the-clock, rapid emergency response to patients across UAE’s Northern Emirates. In May this year, 998 emergency number was activated for National Ambulance where citizens who call 998 from the Northern Emirates are able to speak directly to the National Ambulance Communications Centre.  Ambulances are dispatched according to the severity of the case in line with international standards for achieving best patient outcomes.