The Dubai Corporation for Ambulance Services (DCAS) announced the launch of the first ever women-only ambulance service vehicles on Saturday, The National reported.
The "pink ambulance" is the first of its kind in the UAE and specializes in the emergency treatment of women and children under 12-years-old. Its crews are entirely made up of trained female medics.
Speaking to The National, Khalifa Bin Darai, executive director of DCAS said:
"The specialized ambulance will be stationed at Al Twar municipality center and will cover Deira 12 hours-a-day. It is expected to mostly deal with women going into labor and female patients."
"The evaluation of the pink ambulance vehicle will be based on the number of emergency cases dealt with in a particular area. We want to ensure that many residents will benefit from the service," he added.
People seem to love the idea
Soon after news of the newly launched service began making the rounds online, many took to social media platforms to express their support.
"A wonderful idea, I hope it spreads across the UAE."
"I wish it has been launched earlier"
"A great service offered by incredible staff"
"Truth be told, the UAE always offers the most incredible services to both its nationals and residents"
Similar initiative launched in previous years
In 2009, DCAS launched a similar initiative called the "Ambulance for Maternity and Childhood."
Even though the service didn't feature specially designated pink ambulances, it saw female paramedics cater to all maternity related issues.
Speaking to Gulf News at the time, Dr. Omar Al Saqqaf, an emergency medicine consultant said the service was launched after UAE surveys revealed that most women in the country were more comfortable having female medics tend to them.
"A survey we did showed that the majority of women surveyed supported the idea of a dedicated ambulance to deal with pregnancy issues," he added.