The Safe Cities Authority has started installing emergency QR panic buttons in hospitals across Punjab, which allow citizens to request urgent help, including blood, by scanning a code on their phones. The installation is being carried out in phases on the directives of the Punjab Chief Minister. The system is being rolled out in Lahore and in other cities of the province, so that people in different parts of Punjab can use it as the installation proceeds. The panic buttons give patients and their families a quick route to the authorities in situations where a delay in finding help can cause serious harm.
Under the system, scanning a QR code displays the details of the concerned hospital on the mobile phone of the user. After entering a mobile number, the user can reach the blood bank of the hospital in three ways, which are a call to Helpline 15, a live chat or a video call. This gives people a choice of how to make contact, depending on what they find easiest in an emergency. The code leads directly to the hospital where it is placed, so the person does not need to look for a number or search for the right department before asking for assistance.
Once a request is received, the Safe City team will connect the patient with donors of the required blood group. This step is meant to speed up the supply of blood in emergencies, since families often have to look for donors on their own while a patient waits for treatment. By placing the Safe City team between the patient and the donors, the system turns a request that is made through the code into a search for people with a matching blood group, and it uses the control room of the authority to coordinate the process.
The panic buttons are not restricted to blood requests. Citizens can also scan the QR code to seek immediate assistance from the Safe Cities Authority in other emergency situations. The installation in hospitals is therefore a way of placing the services of the authority at the points where people go when they need medical care. As the phased rollout continues in Lahore and other cities of Punjab, more hospitals are expected to carry the code, and patients and visitors will be able to use their phones to call for help from within the hospital.
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