Time to regulate ambulance industry

Maha Mas Medic Services CEO says regulations needed to ensure services meet a set standard.

KUALA LUMPUR: The government should regulate the mushrooming ambulance industry to ensure a standardised level of service for the benefit of the public.

In making this call, Maha Mas Medic Services chief executive officer Abdul Saleem Said Mohamad said the task of regulating the industry should be spearheaded by both the Ministry of Health (MoH) and the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD).

Saleem said at present, there were no regulations pertaining to the industry, which has been mushrooming over the years, with more private operators complementing government and non-governmental organisation ambulance services.

While the availability of more ambulance services was good for the public, Saleem said the issue at hand was that services were not standardised or controlled.

“There are at least 20 to 30 service providers in the Klang Valley alone and our concern is that some service providers do not have the necessary equipment or staff to run effectively.

“Furthermore, there are also concerns on the road worthiness of the ambulances themselves as service providers are not required to take their ambulances to Puspakom for checks.”

Saleem explained that in regulating the industry, the MoH should set minimum standards for the industry.

This he said, included matters such as the qualifications of staff, services, operations and equipment, while SPAD should look into matters relating to the vehicles.

He added that in the long run, SPAD could also look into regulating the pricing of ambulance services.

“Perhaps SPAD can either set a method of calculating prices according to distance or setting prices within a certain range.

“At present, private ambulance service providers are free to set their own pricing for their services, leading to a pricing war.

“While on paper a price war is good for consumers, you end up having consumers choosing the cheapest services, only to be dissatisfied with the services.”

Saleem explained that with some form of regulated pricing, service providers would be forced to compete on quality of their services and this would in the end, ensure the best deal for consumers.

However, he said if the government regulated the industry, it should be done in stages, with some leeway given to industry players to conform with the regulations.

He said this was because the industry was heavy on cost and was experiencing a shortage of qualified manpower.