Ministry Rejects Dedicated 24-Hour Ambulance for Barbar Health Centre

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The Ministry of Interior has said that allocating a dedicated ambulance to the Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah Health Center in Barbar for 24-hour service could negatively affect emergency response times in Barbar and surrounding areas.

The Ministry said the area is currently served by nine ambulances. In response to a proposal submitted by Northern Municipal Council Chairman and First District representative Dr. Shabbar Ibrahim Al-Wadaei, it noted that the health centre received 801 calls in 2025, accounting for around 4.5% of the total calls recorded in the Northern Governorate.

According to the Ministry, this level of demand does not justify assigning a separate ambulance to the centre, as doing so could affect the availability of ambulances for other emergency calls across the governorate.

Instead, the relevant department suggested that primary healthcare centres be contacted to explore providing a dedicated ambulance for transporting patients whose cases are classified as non-emergency. The Ministry said this could help maintain rapid response times for the National Ambulance Service while supporting the services provided by primary healthcare centres.

The proposal for a 24-hour ambulance was unanimously approved by the Northern Municipal Council during a session last April. The council said the measure would strengthen health preparedness and improve response to emergencies, particularly because having an ambulance permanently stationed near the health centre could reduce response times in critical cases where the first few minutes can be crucial.