Áine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)

I thank Deputy Breen for raising this Adjournment matter, which I am taking on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Mary Harney.

As the Deputy is aware, the reconfiguration of acute hospital services in the HSE mid-west area involves the reorganisation of the regional accident and emergency structure. As part of this reconfiguration, HSE ambulance services in the mid-west have been significantly enhanced and an advanced 24-hour paramedic service is now in operation. Protocols are in place to ensure that all trauma, paediatric and obstetric emergency cases will be brought directly to the major tertiary centre at Limerick Regional Hospital.

Advanced paramedics are trained to a high standard which equips them to provide more complex pre-hospital care than their colleagues in other ambulance service grades. Advanced paramedics can administer a wider range of drugs and carry out urgent assessment and treatment of patients with life-threatening conditions prior to arrival at the hospital, including immediate resuscitation as necessary. These skills constitute an invaluable contribution to maximizing outcomes for patients who become seriously ill or injured.

As the Deputy may be aware, an air ambulance service is currently provided by the Air Corps on behalf of the HSE. The service operates on the basis of a service level agreement prepared by the Department of Defence and the Department of Health and Children, in consultation with the Health Service Executive and the Defence Forces, including the Air Corps, all of which are signatories to it.

The air ambulance service is provided for the following categories: inter-hospital transfer of patients with spinal or other serious injury or illness, neonates requiring immediate medical intervention in Ireland, patients requiring specialised emergency treatment in the UK, organ retrieval teams within Ireland, and paediatric patients requiring immediate medical intervention in Ireland. In addition, the Irish Coast Guard provides air ambulance inter-hospital transfers as part of its work and also provides for emergency medical evacuation from the islands around Ireland. In situations where the coast guard service is not available, the Air Corps may transport patients from offshore islands to mainland hospitals.

The focus of ambulance service policy for the medium term is on the consolidation and development of land ambulance services. This includes ensuring that ambulance personnel have the requisite skills and training to enable them to provide more complex pre-hospital care. The continuing development of control and deployment arrangements will also enable the most effective and efficient use of available resources.

There are no plans at present for the HSE to become involved in the development or use of private air ambulance services, as any funding that might be diverted to another air ambulance initiative would be at the expense of the ground fleet. However, the Minister will bear the question of air ambulances in mind as a possible option in the longer term.

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