Nakuru St John Ambulance's trauma clinic to save crash victims

St John Ambulance has established a new trauma clinic in the Kaira area of Nakuru for saving road crash victims.

The clinic established on Thursday will serve as an emergency unit for the motorists who use the Nairobi Nakuru Highway in case of accidents.

"Motorists using the Nairobi Nakuru Highway can now breathe a sigh of relief after the National Government through St John Ambulance established a Trauma Clinic in Karai area dedicated to saving the lives of road crash victims, "the statement reads.

The clinic is established by the Ministry of Health in partnership with the Kenya National Highway Authority(KeNHA)and National Transport and Safety Authority(NTSA).

"The clinic will have nurses and doctors who are experienced in handling accident and emergency cases as well as general medical trauma, "part of the statement reads.

"It shall have a critical casualty receiving area, triage and stabilisation rooms designed for supporting life before referral."

The trauma clinic will not only serve the road crash victims but also residents of the Karai area who might need emergency care and will be free of charge.

"Once fully operationalised, the facility will be upgraded with advanced cardiac life support equipment, with a standby ambulance for evacuation to selected referral hospitals in Nakuru and Nairobi."

The new trauma centre comes after at least 22 people sustained injuries after an accident in the Karai area near Keroche along the Nairobi-Nakuru Highway.

According to St John Ambulance, many of the passengers were students who were on their way back to school.

 NTSA data shows that road accidents across the country have claimed 563 lives in 2024 since the year started.

These deaths, according to data from the National Transport and Safety Authority, occurred between January 1 to February 11, 2024.

The statistics are an increase compared to deaths recorded during the same period in 2023 which stood at 537.

The passengers recorded 109 deaths and the drivers 35 deaths.

A report by NTSA  for the year 2023 statistics showed that at least 22,885  people were involved in road accidents last year.