Cougar
Motorsport, the organisers of The Rainforest Challenge India, has announced
Manipal Hospital Goa as the Medical Partner for the 2022 edition of the
country’s biggest and toughest off-road motorsport competition. The 8th edition
of RFC India will be held in Goa from July 23 to 30, 2022.
Launched
in 2014, RFC India is the India Chapter of the Rainforest Challenge of
Malaysia, which is ranked No. 3 in the ‘Five Toughest Off-Road Races in the
World’ by Skoda Motorsport (2018). Today, RFC India is counted amongst the top
two RFC Global events out of the 45 editions held across 22 countries and it
enjoys a cult following in the Indian and international off-roading community.
The off-road motorsport competition tests the contestants’ driving and vehicle
recovery skills, team spirit along with their physical and mental strength
under extreme off-road conditions.
This
year, 28 teams from across India are expected to compete for the RFC India 2022
Champion trophy and taking care of their first-aid as well as other emergency
medical needs will be the responsibility of the team of experts from Manipal
Hospital Goa.
As
per Mr Ashish Gupta, Founder & Director, Cougar Motorsport, “Medical
support is a critical part of organising an extreme offroad event such as RFC
India because on one hand we will have extremely tough challenges in store for
the competitors and on the other hand we will be at the mercy of Mother Nature
as the competition will be held in the interiors of Goa during monsoons. There
can be a number of small and big medical emergencies during the week-long
event, which need to be addressed on a priority basis by a team of experts. We
have worked with Manipal Hospital Goa for most of the previous editions of RFC
India and we have been very happy with the best-in-class first aid and
emergency medical support that they have provided whenever required. That is
why we have decided to partner with them yet again.”
Manipal
Hospital Goa will be responsible for ensuring that everyone involved in the
event, right from the competitors to the organisers to hundreds of off-roading
enthusiasts who will converge in Goa to witness this mega off-road event, have
immediate access to medical assistance in case of an injury or a medical
problem arising during the course of the event. A fully-equipped ambulance will
be on standby throughout the course to deal with minor injuries, food
poisoning, insect bites, skin rashes caused by the rain, fractures et al.
Moreover, for any major medical issues, the Emergency Department at the
hospital will be on standby throughout the event.
According
to Surendra Prasad, Director, Manipal Hospital Goa, “Manipal Hospital Goa has
been associated with The Rainforest Challenge India over the past several years
as the Medical Partner. For each event, we have been despatching our
well-equipped ambulance with our manpower trained and equipped to handle all
medical emergency situations. Our team has been camping at the sites during the
events, deep in the jungles of Goa and have managed to take care of all types
of injuries. Manipal Hospitals Goa is once again ready to take up this year's Challenge
and we are looking forward to it.”
Manipal
Hospital Goa is a unit of the renowned Manipal Health Enterprises that is known
for quality and patient care. It is a 235-bedded multi-speciality hospital at
Dona Paula, Panaji that covers the complete range of preventive, curative and
rehabilitative care. The hospital can handle all multiple poly trauma cases
along with chest, abdominal and head injuries at its 24x7 Emergency Department.
Other than RFC India, Manipal Hospital Goa has been associated as a Medical
Partner with a number of sporting events held in Goa, including Triathlon,
Indian Super League, Goa Marathon, Iron Man and aqua sailing events.