Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Last week we learned of the tragic death of Vakaris Martinaitis, a two-year-old child, in Midleton. I offer our deepest sympathies to his parents and family. The circumstances surrounding this death have caused significant concern in the east Cork area because when a well-known neighbour rang for an ambulance, he was told there was no ambulance available to come to the scene. Indeed, no paramedic was dispatched to the scene either. I welcome the fact that the HSE has set up a review group to inquire into all the circumstances surrounding both the call and the fact that, ultimately, this child was transported to hospital in the back of the neighbour's car.

There was a similar incident in the town some weeks earlier when another young child drowned tragically. There are competing issues, but there was concern about the time it took for the ambulance to get to the scene on that occasion. Increasingly, we hear around the country that these are not isolated incidents. There are concerns across the country about the adequacy of the ambulance services and, above all, the response times of ambulances in emergency life-threatening situations in the midlands region, Galway etc.

In Carlow some time ago it took seven hours and three ambulances to bring a minor footballer to hospital for treatment. A year earlier in Drogheda a man was left on the street for 25 minutes before being attended to. In March a garda was asked to drive an ambulance to Letterkenny General Hospital because no paramedic was available. In April 2012 it was revealed that almost half of ambulances dispatched on life-saving cardiac emergencies are failing to reach patients within the strictly set target time of eight minutes.

In February the Minister for Health, Deputy Reilly, said he was going to abandon the national targets for the response times in dispatching ambulances in life-or-death situations. This came weeks after HIQA had increased its target for response times. The Minister has said he wanted to abandon all national targets. I do not know why he would even contemplate doing so. There are separate targets for first responders of emergency medical technicians who would be dispatched in advance of the ambulance and those targets are also not being met.

Given all of these incidents and episodes, I believe there is a fundamental need for a comprehensive review of our ambulance service. Is the Taoiseach satisfied that our national ambulance service is adequately resourced to deliver the service required? Do we have enough ambulances in place across the country? Do we have enough qualified emergency medical technicians in place? We all know about the golden hour in terms of early intervention and getting to a scene where life or death is at stake. It can be crucial in ensuring the survival of any individual caught up in such a situation. I believe there is enough evidence to suggest we all have reasons to be concerned about the adequacy of cover. We need more than just a review into a specific incident. We need reassurance from the Taoiseach that the Government is satisfied that the resources are in place to meet the requirements.

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