Surviving acute life-threatening conditions is heavily influenced by how fast intervention can be given. Examples of such conditions include MI and stroke, common causes of morbidity and mortality in the Philippines. In fact, guidelines provide ideal timeframes for intervention in these conditions, stressing the importance of quick intervention.
Seeing these “ambulansya de paa” in the documentary and probably in many other places, one cannot help but think these people do not even have a fighting chance. Their fates were sealed when they got afflicted with these acute life-threatening conditions that need timely intervention in places the government chose to leave behind. They will likely not make it to or leave the hospital alive, or if they do, they will probably emerge from the situation with considerable morbidity. Investment in roads, ambulances and more healthcare facilities for farflung areas should be a key focus of the government to give these people a fighting chance.
Besides this, prehospital care also involves basic emergent, potentially life-saving care like CPR, staunching areas of bleeding, and immobilizing the neck in trauma that help stabilize the patient to give us time to transport them to a healthcare facility for definitive management. Some of these can actually be taught to laypeople and health worker volunteers even in farflung areas. These measures would buy patients time to actually get to a hospital alive, improving access to healthcare.
Lastly, early recognition by patients that something is seriously wrong will lead them and their family to make haste in going to a healthcare facility instead of hoping for symptoms to resolve. For example, educational campaigns, featuring lessons like the FAST mnemonic can be taught so people recognise stroke early and know to seek help right away.