motorcycle ambulance motorcycle ambulance a motorcycle ambulance is a type of emergency response vehicle which carries either a solo paramedic, emergency medical technician, or first responder to a patient; or may also be used with a trailer or sidecar for transporting patients. because of its small size and agile performance, a motorcycle ambulance is able to respond to a medical emergency much faster than a car or conventional ambulance vehicle in heavy traffic, which can increase survival rates for critically ill patients, especially those in cardiac arrest. riders with two types of motorcycle ambulances in norway history beach life guard motorcycle, redondo beach, california, 1915 demonstration of loading wounded soldiers into motorcycle ambulance, 1918. attaching cover and end curtains. motorcycle ambulances were used during world war i by the british, french, and americans. at the time, the advantages of light weight, speed, and mobility over larger vehicles was cited as the motive for the use of motorcycles with sidecar in this role. the us version had two stretchers arranged one on top of the other. the french ambulance used a sidecar that held a single patient, who could either lie down or sit up. the british red cross society used an 8 brake horsepower (6.0 kilowatts) nut motorcycle with a double-deck sidecar similar to the us version. during testing, it needed only a 9 feet (2.7 metres) turning area, versus 35 feet (11 metres) for a motor car ambulance, and had a lower fuel consumption of 55 to 65 mpg‑us (4.3 to 3.6 l/100 km; 66 to 78 mpg‑imp), compared with 12 to 17 miles per us gallon (20 to 14 litres per 100 kilometres; 14 to 20 miles per imperial gallon) for car ambulances. due to lighter weight, they were said to be less likely to get stuck, and could be pushed out more easily than a large vehicle. sidecar ambulances were used in redondo beach, california in 1915, stationed at a bath house at a beach resort to reach drowning victims quickly. prior to using the motorcycle, lifeguards had to run or row up to several miles along the beach to respond to calls. the knightsbridge animal hospital and institute, london, was using a sidecar ambulance to transport dogs in 1912; this mode was still in use in 1937 by the maryland humane society. worldwide motorcycle ambulances new south wales in 1993, the ambulance service of new south wales was the first ambulance service in australia to introduce motorcycle rapid response team, crewed with an intensive care or mobile intensive care ambulance paramedic. two bmw k100rt motorcycles were borrowed from the new south wales police force highway patrol, with riders undertaking the police motorcycle course. at present there are two motorcycle rapid response crews covering the sydney cbd at any one time utilising yamaha fjr1300 motorcycles. with sydney's narrow streets, the sydney harbour bridge, numerous parklands, and areas difficult to access in a conventional ambulance the 'rapid responder' motorcycles are able to arrive on scene and begin critical treatment of patients several minutes before the arrival of a conventional ambulance whilst still carrying most of the essential equipment of a full-size ambulance. it takes an average six minutes for a motorcycle rapid response paramedic to reach an emergency situation in the cbd, compared to twelve minutes for ambulances proving an invaluable resource. at present, there are two motorcycle rapid response crews covering the sydney cbd at any one time. south australia in south australia, there are paramedics who ride on a cycle or motorcycle; they complement the regular ambulances and are used in areas which might have less space to accommodate a bigger vehicle. victoria in 2012, ambulance victoria introduced the motorcycle paramedic unit, equipped with six motorcycle paramedics for rapid response to emergencies. different types of motorcycles have been trialed, including the initial roll out of piaggio 500cc, which has now been replaced with the bmw f700gs. the unit operates during peak traffic and during major events and festivals, within melbourne's inner metro area. brazil since 2000, the são paulo fire department has operated honda motorcycle ambulances (portuguese: motos operacionais de bombeiros, known as 'mobs') in a first responder role, to offset the influence of traffic on the response times of traditional ambulances. the motorcycles carry a variety of emergency care equipment (including basic extrication, technical rescue, and firefighting gear), and are always deployed in two-man teams, with the lead vehicle carrying a first aid kit and intravenous fluids and the rear vehicle carrying more advanced equipment, including an automated external defibrillator, suction devices, and emergency delivery kits. fire departments in other states, such as minas gerais, mato grosso do sul, and pernambuco, have also adopted motorcycle ambulances since 2008. in august 2008, samu, the federal emergency medical services, purchased 400 motorcycle ambulances to be deployed nationwide between december 2008 and 2009. germany the bavarian red cross has operated motorcycle ambulances since 1983. as of 2011, they report a fleet of 25 motorcycles and 100 volunteer paramedics. ghana the okoa project began operating and manufacturing tricycle motorcycle ambulances in ghana in february 2020, when they established their second international post in tumu, sissala east district. the okoa project is a non-profit dedicated to providing critical, life saving emergency transport to maternity patients, as well as all those ill or injured in need of essential health services. in april 2020, the okoa project began its response to the covid-19 pandemic, using their motorcycle ambulances to distribute hand washing stations, soap, and personal protective equipment (ppe) to rural communities in the sissala east district in northern ghana. hong kong honda st1300p in hong kong. according to the book rescue mission which is written by an emergency medical assistant of hong kong fire services department, the hkfsd established the first motorcycle programme in 1982. at first, there are only two motorcycles stationed in morrison hill ambulance depot. in 1986, the hkfsd found that motorcycles are useful for responding to medical calls, so they bought seven more motorcycles in 1987. in 1989, the motorcycle team had 15 motorcycles and stationed in several ambulance depots. today, the hkfsd has 35 motorcycles. auxiliary medical service, another government-owned service, also has motorcycles. india motorcycle ambulance launched in jalpaiguri, west bengal, india, during 1998 by social worker karimul haque, who received the padma shri award in 2017. ambulances on a motorcycle platform have also been launched in multiple other states of india, such as chhattisgarh, maharashtra, and haryana. these ambulances have provided emergency health services from ferrying pregnant women to a primary health centre to attending to first aid in case of accidents. israel israel makes extensive use of ambucycles through both magen david adom and particularity united hatzalah. japan a 'lifesaving rider' motorcycle of ota city fire department, gunma prefecture. in some areas of japan, japanese fire departments use off-road motorcycles as emergency vehicles. they are useful for negotiating the small streets and heavy traffic in the large urban areas of japanese cities. having off-road motorcycles helps in responding to the mountain hills that are around a lot of cities. some departments would likely have their crews in teams of two or three motorcycles. one of the motorcycles carries a first aid kit and / or automated external defibrillator. the other motorcycles in this team may carry fire fighting and rescue equipment. most crews are firefighters with training in first responder, first aid, and / or paramedic. each crew member wears a lightweight fire suit and a fire fighting motorcycle helmet. many of these motorcycles have their own radio, cargo bays, lights, and sirens. kenya kenya launched her first paramedic rider in may 2015 during the mater heart run. this was done by avenue rescue services ltd, a member of the avenue group of healthcare providers. avenue rescue services launched two motorcycles manned by four riders. the motorcycles are used as first responder during the busy traffic hours, and also for event coverage. the standard chattered international marathon was the second major event to be covered by the parariders. the motorcycles are equipped to handle most medical and surgical emergencies. as part of the united kingdom's department for international development (dfid) wider £50 million country programme (2009), they are putting in place among other things a new motorcycle ambulance service. the magunga's health centre now operates a motorcycle (sidecar) ambulance service. sarah brown, global patron of the white ribbon alliance for safe motherhood said: this is yet another great example of britain leading the way in saving mothers' lives. for a long time, the world has known what needs to be done to reduce the numbers of women dying in pregnancy and childbirth and yet the same numbers of women continue to die. the key to changing the survival chances of mothers and infants is a better investment in health services that vulnerable women can reach. dfid's aid money makes a massive difference because it means countries can invest in facilities and health workers and simple but vital things like motorbike ambulances which can often mean the difference between life or death for women who live a long way from a clinic. malawi motorcycle ambulances have been used in remote rural areas in malawi as a means to improve access to obstetric health care facilities for women in labour or needing prenatal care. lightweight off-road motorcycles, equipped with a sidecar holding a stretcher for the patient, have been found to be an efficient supplement, but not replacement for, four-wheel drive suv ambulances. purchase prices and operating costs have been found to be a fraction of a four-wheeled vehicle, and the sidecar combinations have been found to be less likely to be misused by diverting them for non-healthcare purposes. the lighter sidecar combinations are better able to cope with poor roads and areas that become impassable to heavier cars and trucks during the rainy season. disadvantages include the reluctance of drivers to travel at night in some cases, and the inability to carry more than one patient at a time. the report concluded that: motorcycle ambulances reduce the delay in referring women with obstetric complications from remote rural health centres to the district hospital, particularly under circumstances where health centres have no access to other transport or means of communication to call for an ambulance. they are also a relatively cheap and effective option for referral of patients in developing countries, particularly in rural areas with little or no public transport. nineteen motorcycle ambulances can be bought for the price of one toyota land cruiser car ambulance. operating costs compare in a similar way. motorcycle ambulances also potentially help reduce costs for women and their families to access emoc, although this was not the subject of this study. poland honda st1300, gdańsk, poland. in some cities of poland, emergency units use motorcycles as emergency vehicles. they are useful as they are faster than car / truck in heavy traffic in the city centres. the motorcycles carry usually one or two persons, a first aid kit, and automated external defibrillator. the motorcycles are equipped with radio, cargo bags, lights, and sirens. one of the most active non-profit organisations, using motorcycles as ambulance in capital of poland, is motorcycling foundation called fundacja jednym śladem. members of the foundation are first responders, and all of them support official polish rescue system. portugal since july 2004, the national institute of medical emergencies (inem) have included motorcycle ambulances in their services. these fast ambulances are operational within the entire country. serbia suzuki v-strom 650 in serbia. the emergency medical service in belgrade introduced a suzuki v-strom 650 in 2011, with the crew consisting of a motorcyclist and a doctor. panniers and a top-box contain equipment for cpr, bandaging, anti-shock therapy, paramedic, and other equipment. south africa the south african national roads agency through er24 ems operates motorcycle medical response units, these units use a suzuki v-strom 650 staffed and equipped at an intermediate life support level to respond on the e-toll freeway and stabilise patients whilst conventional ambulances make their way through traffic. southern sudan an eranger motorcycle ambulance in southern sudan in march 2009, through a partnership between unicef and the government of southern sudan, a lifeline was extended to some pregnant women with the introduction of five motorcycle ambulances in the state of eastern equatoria. the