Characteristics of ambulance crashes in Ankara: A retrospective analysis

Abstract

One of the threats that Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel regularly face on the field is ambulance collisions and crashes. Ambulance crashes cause death and injury burden on both the EMS personnel and the civilians. In our study we aimed to evaluate the characteristics of ambulance crashes in Ankara, capital province of Türkiye. This retrospective study analyzed 812 ambulance crashes in Ankara, Turkey, from 01/01/2022 to 31/12/2023 using data from the EMS Command Centre. Crashes were categorized by location, date, driver’s gender and education, patient presence, and accident mechanism, revealing significant correlations between crash incidence and factors such as patient absence and urban settings with stationary objects. We found that there is no statistically significant correlation between the gender and the educational status of the driver and the risk of an ambulance crash. Our data analysis also points out that crashes occur involving a stationary object and EMS vehicle are more common than other mechanisms. Additionally, there is statistically significant correlation between the incidence of an ambulance crash and the absence of a patient inside the ambulance. Ambulance crashes in Ankara, Türkiye, frequently involve stationary vehicles on straight roads in urban areas and are more common when no patient is on board. These findings highlight the need for improved training and safety measures for ambulance drivers to prevent such accidents.

Keywords

• Ambulance crashes
• emergency medical services
• traffic accidents
• driver training

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