John Lyons (Dublin North West, Labour) | Oireachtas source

In the short time available to me I wish to speak about the valuable service provided by Dublin Fire Brigade in our capital city and the ongoing review of ambulance services. Dublin Fire Brigade and Ambulance Service has operated since 1898. Dublin Fire Brigade performs a dual role, which means that either an ambulance or a crew on a fire appliance will arrive at a scene and stabilise a patient until an ambulance arrives. As a result of this dual role and the brave work of fire fighters, Dublin has one of the best survival rates for out-of-hospital cardiac arrest cases in the world. Dublin Fire Brigade is a first class example of a fire service based emergency medical service, which is recognised internationally as best practice.

This model is used in many cities throughout Europe, such as Paris, Dusseldorf and Frankfurt, and also in cities such as New York and Detroit in the United States of America.

At present, the HSE pays about €9 million for the Dublin Fire Brigade to deliver this vital service for the capital city. This amounts to less than 7% of the total national budget for ambulance services, even though Dublin Fire Brigade responds to almost 40% of ambulance calls nationally.

As a Dublin TD, I have been contacted by many fellow citizens from all sides and staff of the fire services, including those I know personally, about the HSE plan from March 2013 and the current joint review of Dublin ambulance services by Dublin City Council and the HSE. This HSE plan from last year, details of which were revealed in The Irish Timesrecently, includes plans to take control of the Dublin ambulance service from Dublin Fire Brigade by the end of 2015. There are concerns among firefighters that the review that is currently under way will recommend this plan and not consider the exemplary service provide by the Dublin Fire Brigade, which I mentioned already.

I am out of time. I value the Dublin Fire Brigade service and the ambulance service that it offers, and anybody who lives in Dublin or receives its services will be aware that it is the best service in the country. The level of ambulance service that the Dublin Fire Brigade provides is where the bar should be set for all ambulance services throughout the country.

As a citizen, I am fearful of any changes to the way the ambulance service is run nationally and fearful of the prospect of its being taken into the control of the HSE. I note that Swords is covered by the Dublin Fire Brigade as well. I am merely concerned that the bar set by Dublin Fire Brigade in running the ambulance service in Dublin will be jeopardised and I ask that this be acknowledged in any review that is carried out. It is the only ambulance service, I believe, that almost reaches the HIQA standards even though it is not obliged to abide by them. I am aware that another Member is speaking on this, so I will leave it at that.

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