The government has decided to utilize vehicles of private hospitals due to the high demand for ambulance services owing to the current Covid-19 situation in the Maldives.

This was revealed by Covid-19 spokesperson Mohamed Mabrook Aziz during a routinely press briefing by the Covid-19 task force on Monday night.

As such, Mabrook highlighted that they have been facing hindrances in the provision of ambulance services due to the rising demand at a time the pandemic has been sweeping steadily across Maldives.

The National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) is currently in discussion to resolve this issue, he added.

Further noting that taxi services have also been halted due to the lockdown imposed across the Greater Malé Region, the spokesperson stated that a protocol will be formed under which transport will be carried out for patients, especially under emergency situations.

Once these arrangements are made, it will be shared with the public.

Mabrook added that ambulance demand is not increasing due to increased cases but rather because of the duration of each ambulance trip. It is also noted that each vehicle is disinfected after each trip, which may also cause delays.

In this regard, the government has begun work to utilize the vehicles of private hospitals.

Currently, only five ambulances are being operated at Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) and there have been public concern over delays in acquiring ambulance services.