Frank Feighan (Sligo-Leitrim, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputies for raising the important issue of ambulance services in Connemara. It is an issue on which good progress has been made but it has been going on since 2015. I am aware that the Deputies are engaging with the proposals for an ambulance base in Connemara. I can confirm that the project for a new ambulance base, to be located in the village of Recess, is in the HSE's capital plan for 2022. I am advised by the HSE that preparation for works at the new facility is at an advanced stage. In the interim, national ambulance service crews in north Connemara are being deployed from a base in Clifden. This temporary measure will remain in place until works at the building in Recess are completed and the site becomes operational.

I am aware that response times remain a challenge. As previously stated in this House, a 2016 national review of ambulance capacity has highlighted that, in many instances, the most effective way to improve emergency response times in rural areas is through community first responder schemes. Community first responder groups are comprised of trained volunteers who are supported and dispatched by the national ambulance service. These groups respond to particular medical emergencies, such as cardiac arrest, respiratory arrest, chest pain, choking and stroke, while an emergency response vehicle is en routeto the patient. A total of 177 community first responder groups are operational across the country, including 12 groups in County Galway.

I fully appreciate the need to make progress on the new facility in Recess, and I have received reassurances that this project is being progressed. Currently, the HSE estates unit is engaging with the local authority regarding road access for the proposed base, and it is anticipated that a planning application will be submitted in quarter 3 of 2022.

This year an unprecedented €200.7 million has been allocated to the NAS, and this includes €8.23 million for new developments. This funding is being invested in additional front-line capacity as well as increasing staffing within the hear and treat service in the national emergency operations centre, which advises lower-acuity patients of appropriate alternatives to hospital transfer. Overall, the funding for new service developments will allow for the recruitment of 128 additional whole-time equivalent staff.

I reiterate that the Government is committed to continuous improvement in the NAS, in response to the increased need we continue to see across the country. Investment in capacity increases is best illustrated by the 200 student paramedics currently enrolled in the NAS college on various stages of the BSc. (Hons) Paramedic Studies programme, and the 2022 NAS recruitment programme for paramedics, student paramedics and intermediate care operatives which launched earlier this year. I assure Deputies that the NAS is focused on improving patient care, clinical outcomes and response times in rural areas, including through the ambulance base project in Recess, and that the Government is invested in facilitating these strategic developments.

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