When asthma attacks

A group of university students were out on Saturday evening to hang out at a local spot outside the city. While having fun and discussing school work, Kola, who was their class representative, started coughing and wheezing. Everyone was aware that Kola was asthmatic and always had his inhaler with him, so there was no need to worry. He used his inhaler but the wheezing only got worse. He became agitated and his classmates started to panic.

“An asthma attack is a sudden worsening of asthma symptoms caused by the tightening of muscles around your airways. This tightening is called a bronchospasm. During the asthma attack, the lining of the airways also becomes swollen or inflamed and thicker mucus – more than normal – is produced.”

— WebMD

Symptoms of asthma include trouble breathing, wheezing and shortness of breath. During an attack, the following symptoms rapidly worsen:

• Coughing that won\’t stop
• Very rapid breathing
• Chest tightness or pressure
• Difficulty talking
• Feelings of anxiety or panic
• Pale, sweaty face

Kola’s friends tried calling an ambulance but because of their location and the poor road network, the ambulance service could not reach them. They were left to sort themselves out using public transportation.

En-route to the hospital, Kola became calm and it seemed to them as if his symptoms had reduced. They didn\’t know that Kola was actually experiencing “silent chest” which is a severe complication that results from the tightening of the lungs with an inability of air to flow through the lungs. By the time they got to the nearest hospital 1 hour 45mins later, Kola could no longer talk and had slipped into unconsciousness. He was admitted into the intensive care unit and survived. Kola’s family sold property to cover the cost of his extended hospital stay and his peers moved ahead in school while he recovered. He was lucky to escape with his life, but not without long-term consequences, medically and financially.

This preventable complication happened because of a lack of effective emergency medical services. Emergency Response Africa is bridging that gap by creating the largest network of First Responders, emergency vehicles and hospitals to deliver emergency medical care in minutes. 

Call ERA on 0800 0225 5372 if you or a loved one have any of these symptoms and the symptoms don’t get better quickly.

WHY CALL ERA?

1. We respond to all medical emergencies in minutes with qualified medical personnel, using motorcycles to beat traffic and avoid delays.

2. We have partnerships with verified Emergency-Ready hospitals across Lagos, that affords our subscribers immediate medical attention upon arriving at these hospitals, beating registration and waiting protocols.

3. Our services are affordable and subscribers don’t need to worry about payment at the time of an emergency.

4. Our First Responders are qualified, swift, and empathetic. 

Don\’t wait for medical emergencies to happen leaving you helpless. Subscribe to ERA and have someone call whenever you have a medical emergency. EMERGENCY RESPONSE AFRICA