NIMHANS rolls out lay responder module to improve emergency care for road crash victims

Bringing focus to the critical gap in immediate care for road crash victims, NIMHANS on Monday launched a lay responder care module aimed at strengthening early emergency response in the city.

The initiative, part of a project to build youth capacity to provide first response care, also includes a dedicated website and volunteer identity cards to support trained responders.

Road traffic injuries continue to pose a major public health challenge in India, with an estimated 23-25 deaths occurring every hour, largely affecting young people. Experts noted that a significant proportion of fatalities occur before victims can reach the hospital, with only a small fraction receiving timely first aid.

Speaking at the launch, Parashurama K., Deputy Inspector General of Police and Commissioner for Traffic and Road Safety, said trained lay responders can play a vital role in bridging the gap between the time of injury and access to professional medical care. He stressed the need to expand such training to frontline police personnel and those working at toll booths.

Prabha S. Chandra, NIMHANS director, highlighted the scale of the problem, noting that the institute handles around 10,000 to 13,000 traumatic brain injury cases annually, with a majority linked to road traffic incidents. She underlined the importance of strengthening both prevention and post-crash care systems.

Training module

According to Gautham M. Sukumar, professor and head of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Injury Prevention at NIMHANS, the programme has been developed as a structured, simulation-based training module in collaboration with Autoliv India Private Limited, the Karnataka State Police, and the National Institute of Personnel Management.

The training equips participants with essential life-saving skills, including scene safety, rapid assessment, hands-only CPR, bleeding control, and basic fracture management. So far, over 900 individuals, including about 110 police personnel, have been trained under the programme.

The pilot phase demonstrated strong feasibility and acceptance, and officials said the initiative would now be scaled up to the district level, beginning with five districts in Karnataka. A dedicated website has also been created to connect trainers and responders on a single platform.

The programme is expected to strengthen community-based emergency response systems and contribute to efforts to reduce road traffic injuries and fatalities.