Chennai: Kumaran* (32) works 12 hours a day, doing what he loves, serving people. His job, which revolves around rushing emergency cases from a spot to a hospital in the 108 ambulance that he drives, has been one filled with various challenges.
Beginning his shift at 8 am, the individual gets a minimum of five to six calls a day. Driving an ambulance that deals with ‘Advanced Life Support’, he claims that the busiest days during the week are Saturday to Monday.
“The biggest challenge is having to deal with the disrespect and rage of auto drivers, bikers and others on the road. The fact that we have to take the patient through all of that as fast as possible, makes our work more challenging,” he said.
Narrating a recent case, Kumaran said, “A lorry had crashed outside Chellammal College, Guindy, recently and five college students were injured, three of who died on the spot. We had to rush the other two, who profusely bled, to the hospital.
From the time we start to work each morning, these are the kind of cases we see. Initially, the sight of blood made me feel sick. I was terrified of it. However, with time, I have learned to get used to it.”
At his previous job, wherein he worked as a driver of a school van for five years in Delhi, he felt no job satisfaction. “Though I now have to work for 12 hours each day, the joy of helping others keeps me charged throughout. It angers me when I see cases of accidents followed by drunken driving,” he said.
Hailing from Chelan district, the young man is a father of two. Despite the fact that he lives far away from his wife and daughters, he claims that his love for the job keeps him going.
*names changed
