THE major job of ambulance service CARES in Islamabad is responding to big emergency situations and road accidents. But it is the little jobs, like responding to a medical emergency call by an elderly sick housewife, that is winning CARES the hearts of Islamabad residents.

Farzana, 69, who suffers from high blood pressure, called CARES' universal access number 1122 when her blood pressure shot up to the dangerously high level of 190/120.

The ambulance arrived within minutes. After being given emergency treatment to lower her blood pressure, she was transported to the nearest public hospital, which for her is Pims.

This is not the first time that Farzana has sought help from CARES. Before the death of her husband, who suffered from chronic lung disease, they had depended upon the service whenever he went into one of his breathing crisis spells.

The ambulance would arrive within minutes of her call and provide her husband with the necessary emergency treatment before putting him on a stretcher and ferrying him to Pims.

Farzana, whose only daughter is married and lives in Karachi, says she would not have been able to manage their medical emergencies without the help of CARES which operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Apart from responding to cases of acute respiratory problems, other emergencies which CARES attend to include traffic accidents, gunshot and bomb blast, burns, stroke, acute cardiac problems, loss of consciousness or unresponsiveness, diminished consciousness or mental confusion, severe alcohol or drug intoxification and any other problem which puts the life of the patient at risk.

The CARES ambulance service, which started operation in 2007 under the Capital Development Authority's Capital Hospital, receives about 30 calls a day, the majority of them pertaining to road accidents.

Call centre operators at CARES' head office at Capital Hospital receive emergency calls on the universal access number 1122 and direct the nearest ambulance in one of the seven CARES centres scattered across Islamabad to reach the site within seven to 10 minutes, provide necessary first aid assistance, and shift the patient to the nearest government hospital.

Each of the seven CARES centres in the city covers a particular service zone, managing accidents, emergencies and medical problems arising out of disasters as well as transportation to hospitals.

Serving only urban Islamabad at the moment, the seven centres are located in F-6, G-6, E-7, I-8, F-10, G-10 and I-10 sectors. Each centre is equipped with two ambulances and each ambulance is staffed with a driver, an emergency medical technician (EMT) and a nurse.

There are a total of 16 ambulances and 170 employees, including two directors. All employees are trained to assess a patient's condition and perform emergency medical procedures needed to ensure adequate breathing and cardiovascular circulation until the patient reaches the hospital.

These procedures include cardiopulmonary resuscitation, controlling severe external bleeding, preventing shock, as well as immobilization of body to prevent spinal damage and splinting of bone fractures.

Amongst the major emergencies in Islamabad that CARES has responded to are the Marriott Hotel blast and fire, the Airblue plane crash on the Margalla Hills, the Lal Masjid operation and the various bomb blast incidents in the city.

It was also a CARES ambulance which transported the slain Governor Salman Taseer to hospital after he was gunned down in F-6 sector.