Emmet Stagg (Kildare North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for allowing me to raise this topical issue and the Minister of State at the Department of Health, Deputy White, for coming to the House to respond to it.

Above all else, people are concerned about their health, and if they are injured in an accident or suffer a heart attack or a stroke they want to be assured that the system of ambulance cover throughout the State will give them the best chance of survival, with prompt medical attention on site and efficient transfer to hospital. I commend our paramedical staff on the tremendous work they do, in often horrific circumstances.

The State is covered by 86 ambulance stations. Under the Croke Park agreement the issue of inefficiencies in rostering arrangements in ambulance stations was referred to the Labour Court following intensive discussions between the HSE's national ambulance service and trade unions representing paramedical staff. The Labour Court subsequently issued a recommendation directing the national ambulance service and the trade unions to address a number of overtime-generating inefficiencies within rostering arrangements. Discussions have concluded at 30 ambulance stations on changes to rosters and 25 will now operate on a 24-hour basis, 365 days per year. However, the stations in Maynooth, Baltinglass, Swords, Athy and Arklow will not have an ambulance on stand-by for immediate dispatch for 12 hours per week. This means there will be no local cover for the equivalent of 26 days, or almost one month, each year.

Maynooth ambulance station covers a population of 60,369 in the towns of Celbridge, Leixlip, Clane, Kilcock and Straffan, as well as Maynooth. Between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. every Thursday, no ambulance is available for dispatch directly from Maynooth ambulance station. In the event of an emergency, an ambulance would have to be sourced from Athy, which is 90 minutes distant, Naas, which is one hour distant, Dublin or Cavan. I do not want to scaremonger but it would be inefficient to allow this situation to continue if it puts people's lives at risk. The national ambulance service has pointed out that two new rapid response vehicles operate in south Dublin and Kildare and that a new hospital transfer service has increased ambulance capacity. However, neither I nor the people of north Kildare are satisfied with the current arrangement.

If full cover can be retained in 25 stations throughout the country, why can this not be achieved in Maynooth? What is the cost of reinstating dispatch from Maynooth on a 24-hour basis, 365 days per year? I ask that the matter be reconsidered because I cannot understand how savings can be made through the changes that have been introduced. If the Minister of State does not have specific information I will be satisfied if he passes the information to me subsequently. I have been trying to get information from the ambulance service but it is like pulling teeth from hens.

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