Desun Hospital in Kolkata has recently taken a monumental step in advancing emergency healthcare by inaugurating the city’s first rooftop helipad. This ambitious project aims to provide critical care with greater speed and efficiency, significantly cutting down on transport time for patients arriving via air ambulance. Located atop the hospital’s new Annex 2 building, the helipad will be instrumental in helping transfer critically ill patients directly to the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit (ICU) without the delays of road transport.
The helipad’s creation is the result of nearly two years of planning and construction. Having received approval from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the facility will be crucial for transporting burn victims and those suffering from severe medical conditions from remote areas, not only within Kolkata but also from neighboring states like Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha. This step is expected to save invaluable time in life-threatening situations, where minutes matter.
Before this innovation, patients traveling by air ambulance would land at Kolkata’s airport and still require road transport, often leading to long delays due to traffic. The new helipad will eliminate this bottleneck, allowing patients to bypass city traffic and receive immediate care upon landing, greatly enhancing survival chances.
Shaoli Dutta, Director of Desun Hospital, shared that the hospital’s goal is to ensure timely medical intervention by connecting patients from distant areas, including from their Siliguri unit, directly to the hospital. This facility stands as a unique feature in East India and is expected to set a high standard for hospitals across the region.
Desun Hospital’s new Annex 2 building, which houses 450 beds, including 120 ICU beds, has been designed to handle the most critical cases. With world-class medical infrastructure in place, the helipad complements the hospital’s comprehensive emergency care services. It marks a key milestone in advancing healthcare not just in Kolkata, but across the East Indian region.
Prashant Sharma, Chairman of the ICC Healthcare Wing, commended the initiative, stating it would be a tremendous success in providing quick, life-saving medical intervention. Healthcare experts across India have praised the move as a breakthrough in emergency care, with Sudipta Mitra, CEO of Peerless Hospital, emphasizing how other states have adopted similar infrastructure, calling for Kolkata to keep pace.
The successful launch of this helipad represents an important step in the ongoing modernization of healthcare in India. As air ambulance services continue to be a lifeline for patients in critical conditions, the rooftop helipad will not only make access to healthcare faster but also more reliable for patients in need of urgent treatment.
This remarkable addition to Desun Hospital is expected to inspire other institutions to follow suit, thus enhancing healthcare delivery and making life-saving treatments more accessible to patients across East India and beyond.