In a bid to enhance the speed and efficiency of emergency services, the Lagos State Government has strengthened the operations of the Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS) through digital communication upgrades, advanced tracking systems, and strategic deployment of personnel and ambulance points statewide.
The innovations aim to address long-standing challenges such as traffic congestion, poor road networks, and delays caused by misinformation from distress callers.
The Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Ministry of Health, Dr Olusegun Ogboye, emphasised the importance of public support in emergency situations.
“Ambulance teams are not adversaries; they are your allies. When you see an ambulance, give way, whether it is empty or not. It could be on its way to pick up a specialist urgently needed in surgery. Ambulances are your friends,” he said.
The state-run emergency service currently operates from four major bases with 26 ambulance points strategically located across Lagos. Ogboye explained that it is supported by a workforce of 196 trained personnel, including 64 nurses and 74 community health extension workers, who provide critical pre-hospital care and swift transportation to medical facilities.
Despite its successes, the service continues to grapple with delays caused by Lagos’ notorious traffic and misinformation from emergency callers.
LASAMBUS Director, Mrs Beatrice Makinde, explained, “Our ideal response time is 10 minutes, but that’s not always realistic. Sometimes a caller says an accident happened at Tollgate, and we head there, only to find it’s on the other side. And instead of clearing the way, people slow down to watch, causing more gridlock. It makes getting through extremely difficult.”
To combat these issues, LASAMBUS has invested in digital infrastructure and tracking technologies to streamline dispatch operations, verify emergency locations more accurately, and monitor ambulance movement in real-time.
These improvements reinforce the service’s critical role in Lagos’ healthcare system and demonstrate the government’s commitment to ensuring no life is lost due to delays in emergency response.
