They say that a dog is man’s best friend. For the blind or visually impaired, these animals are a guide with which they can move around the city and guarantee their safety. In short, “an additional extension of our body,” said Silvia Borrego, head of Once’s social services department.
A reality that was taken into account by Zaragoza City Hall when developing a new protocol so that assistance dogs can board fire ambulances. “Often, when these people had to be transported by ambulance, the professionals did not clearly know how to act,” explains the delegated advisor for firefighters and civil protection, Ruth Bravo.
A “necessary” protocol
Borrego, stressed that since ONCE values this protocol as something “very necessary and important”. A right which “is not always guaranteed” and which “now places the blind on an equal footing with the rest of citizens”.
When faced with an accident, the woman explains that service dogs “usually become nervous.” It’s a bond so strong that, according to Borrego, it only soothes them “when the person is cared for and protected.” He defines it in a few words: “They care more about our safety than their own.”
In addition, it is a project that does not require complex or expensive infrastructure. This measure can be applied in any ambulance using belts “like those used by people who travel by car with their pets,” Borrego explains.
The steps to follow in the new protocol were explained by the medical chief of the Zaragoza Fire Department, Armando Cester. The first, less serious case, where the patient travels seated, ensures that “the dog can be lying on the ground, at the user’s feet and held by the user on a leash, while always maintaining physical contact with the animal” .
If the patient cannot be transported seated, then the dog will be placed on the floor of the ambulance “in a transport-specific care compartment”. However, efforts will still be made to anchor the dog with a margin to allow some mobility, “ensuring adequate support within it,” he explained.
Once at the hospital, he stressed that it will be the hospital staff who will be responsible for the entry and maintenance of the animal. The objective is thus to “guarantee” disabled people access to public services under equal conditions.
Dogs allowed
The assistance dogs that will be admitted are those provided for in the regional regulations for disabled people and in the specific regulations which regulate this type of situation, classified into five categories.
On the one hand, there is the guide dog, which is trained to accompany and lead people with a visual impairment, and the assistance dog, used to promote the autonomy of people with a physical disability and who need help in the tasks of their lives. every day.
This measure was promoted in collaboration with the Once Foundation and will now be implemented in future emergencies. With this protocol, we seek to provide the best care to people with disabilities from the Fire Fighting, Rescue and Civil Protection Service, in compliance with current regulations and the approved municipal accessibility ordinance. during the last term.
“This municipal government is committed to making the city a more accessible place for everyone,” said Bravo, who added that this is a “transversal objective” for all municipal management, on which all are working the areas of the City Council, including the Zaragoza Fire Department with the incorporation of this type of measures.
The protocol was developed taking into account the indications of social entities, such as the Once Foundation, and will be applied in health care to a patient who requires the accompaniment of a dog as long as his clinical condition allows it and does not pose problem. risk to the patient of the assistance.
On the other hand, there is also a sound signal dog to warn people with hearing impairments; the warning dog, trained to alert of a medical incident in people with a certain type of illness, such as diabetes or epilepsy and, finally, those trained to care for people with autism spectrum disorders.
