Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Every Deputy will want to share with the Minister their experiences in their own constituency. My home county of Donegal has had major problems with ambulance services in recent years. There are a number of families who have lost loved ones due to the length of time it took the ambulance to arrive. There is no doubt about that. They have very courageously told their stories and campaigned for a better ambulance service. I am sorry to report, having spoken to people who work in the service over the past few days, that there is not enough personnel in place around the county. There are not enough ambulance bases, ambulances and personnel to cover the county. On top of that, the number of people waiting on trolleys over the past number of weeks in the major acute hospital, Letterkenny University Hospital, has been at the top. In that regard, currently, Letterkenny University Hospital is second only to University Hospital Limerick, which has a terrible problem with overcrowding and people waiting on trolleys in the emergency department. There is a backlog at the emergency department in Letterkenny and ambulances are backed up. From speaking to families, I know that there have been many instances of great distress being caused to the patients and the paramedics operating those ambulances. Their business is saving lives. They have done that and have got the patient to the hospital, only to face a backlog. The working conditions are utterly unacceptable. Their business is saving lives; that is what they signed up to do.

To be clear, my point is that there is not an adequate ambulance service in County Donegal. I do not think there is a recognition of the unique geography of the county. The paramedics who work in the service are under unbelievable pressure. That must be dealt with and Letterkenny University Hospital must be helped to tackle the crisis in beds, nurses and doctors. The two crises in the ambulance service and the acute hospital in Letterkenny lead to impossible working conditions for the front-line emergency workers who are working there. They are being failed and it is not acceptable. I appeal to the Minister to examine the issue with his colleagues and to make it clear to the National Ambulance Service and the Saolta Hospital Group.

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