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Professor Ahmed N. Zakariah, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Ambulance Service, (NAS) on Wednesday, has called for the passage of the NAS Bill because the absence of the legislation is limiting their work in so many ways.

“We will be re-submitting and hoping it will be passed in no time to enhance our work,” he said.

Prof Zakariah made the call at the 2016 NAS Annual Review Meeting, held in Accra.

The two-day meeting is providing the platform for management and staff of the NAS to take stock of their activities over the past year; and strategise for the success this year.

Recounting some of the challenges of the NAS since its inception in 2004, Prof. Zakariah mentioned the lack of a dedicated source.

“The other challenge is inadequate fleet, coupled with the existing  fleet being overaged, which frequently develop major and minor faults, reducing the number of available vehicles on the road at any point in time,” he said. “This seriously impedes smooth operations.”

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NAS, however, commended the Government for expressing its commitments to strengthening the NAS and called for speedy attention.

On staff work output, he charged the staff to share a sense of renewed hope and confidence. “Let us bounce to normalcy with grace, courage and determination.”

Prof Zakariah also entreated the staff to be compassionate to their clients always.

“Ghana needs your support, it’s not enough to just complain, but it’s enough to advocate for empowerment in the emergency response system,” he advised.

The CEO thanked the European Union and other development partners for their support in training NAS Emergency Medical Technicians on maternal and neonatal emergencies through the Millennium Accelerated Framework initiative.

NAS is the Emergency Medical Service system of the country dedicated to providing out-of-hospital acute medical care, transport to definitive care and other medical transport to patients with illnesses and injuries, which prevent them from transporting themselves.

It started as a pilot project with seven stations in three regions and has since grown into 132 stations in all the  regions, with a staff strength of almost 1700 at the close of 2016.