Healthcare officials in Calgary have unveiled a new ambulance designed for treating and transporting obese patients in an emergency, believed to be the first of its kind in this country.
The ambulance is equipped with a wide mechanical lift that gently raises patients weighing up to 1,000 pounds (450 kilograms) into the carriage.
"The population is becoming heavier and we needed an ambulance that could handle bigger loads and to reduce injuries to our paramedics from lifting," Emergency Medical Services supervisor Eric Arnestad told AFP.
According to Statistics Canada, the number of Canadians who are overweight or obese has risen dramatically in recent years, mirroring a worldwide phenomena. More than 20 percent, or six million Canadians are considered obese.
Here's Calgary's fleet of ambulances for the morbidly obese...ready to spring into action.
1 comment:
While I agree that footing the bill for the fatness of others is unacceptable, they likely didn't build these things because obese people demanded it. More likely, the EMT workers demanded some alternative to having to pick up a 500 pound person on a stretcher.
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