Áine Brady (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)

I am responding to this Adjournment on behalf of my colleague, the Minister for Health and Children.

Ambulance control is an essential element of the structures needed to ensure that emergency ambulance services operate in the most effective and efficient manner. Internationally, for patient safety reasons, there has been a consistent move to greater centralisation of control functions. This enables more efficient use of ambulance fleet and personnel through the introduction of new technology, operated by staff dedicated to control and despatch duties, which in turn allows response times to be improved and the most appropriate service response to each call to be determined and despatched.

Prior to the establishment of the HSE, each health board had its own ambulance service, with a range of different regional control arrangements In most cases these made limited use of technology and managed only those ambulance resources belonging to the health board concerned. The establishment within the HSE of a national ambulance service has enabled a major programme of reform and improvement to be commenced. This aims to maximise operational efficiency and provide a more responsive and appropriate emergency ambulance service.

The HSE, with the support of the Department of Health and Children and the Health Information and Quality Authority, has determined that the needs of the health service can best be met by the establishment of two ambulance control centres for the country. While the needs of the service could be met by a single centre, it is considered more appropriate to have a second centre in order to ensure that a backup capability will always be available.

One of these centres will be located in the east of the country, with the second in Ballyshannon, County Donegal. The project to establish a single control centre model has significantly advanced with the recent closure of Naas control centre and transfer of its functions to Dublin. A phased process of further change is planned during 2011 and this includes the control functions currently located in Castlebar being relocated to Ballyshannon in the first quarter of the new year. The HSE is engaged with staff representative bodies in relation to the planned changes.

The Minister is satisfied that these changes will enable the most appropriate ambulance resources to be despatched as expeditiously and efficiently as possible in the interests of provided a safe and high-quality service to the public.

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