Mark Wall (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I join colleagues yesterday and, I am sure, today, in raising the need for defibrillators throughout the country, following the shock we all felt during the Denmark-Finland game when a young fit player, Christian Ericksen, dropped to the ground after suffering a cardiac arrest. The medical team on site jumped into action and with the aid of an automated external defibrillator, AED, the player was stabilised and a life was saved. The availability of trained people and an AED was key. The Irish Red Cross estimate there are between 8,000 and 10,000 public access defibrillators in Ireland but there is evidence some are not being checked regularly and, therefore, may not be working. A study by the Health Information and Quality Authority found instances of battery failure and issues regarding the accessibility of defibrillators and where they were located.

We need a central register of all available defibrillators in the country and regular inspections to ensure they are working. I previously highlighted our magnificent community first responders who are embedded in our communities and, thankfully, many of them are back at work. We must provide them with the training and funding they need to be able to certify and log these AEDs on a central system. We should also talk with all the many clubs in the country, which have AEDs locked away in clubhouses and are unsure about making them available to the public due to fears about vandalism and insurance. We need to reassure them that should vandalism occur, insurance will be in place to replace the unit.

A defibrillator used by a trained person increases the survival rate from a sudden cardiac arrest by 50% if CPR and defibrillation occurs within the first four minutes of the incident. Survival rates diminish at a rate of 7% to 10% for every minute thereafter. Let us give people the best possible chance of survival from cardiac arrest and make these life-saving machines available everywhere in the country.The Leader, like me, is aware of the terrific service carried out by our 15 Local Link bus services throughout the country. The 830 route from Athy to Newbridge has been a life-changer for so many along the route allowing so many people to obtain, and indeed maintain, new employment, to get to the shops and to visit families and friends at regular times and days. This is a route and service making a difference to rural south Kildare and its villages. The Kildare South Dublin Local Link wants to improve its service on the 880 route from Carlow via Castledermot to Naas. The application is with the National Transport Authority, NTA, but has unfortunately not received the funding required and we are told that the NTA is seeking additional funding from the Government. The Kildare South Dublin Local Link website tells us that if improved, the 880 route would benefit from additional trips in each direction, the addition of services on a Saturday and Sunday, and the addition of evening services on Friday and Saturday. Most important, the reconfiguration will also see the inclusion of the villages of Narraghmore, Calverstown and Two Mile House, bringing much-needed public transport to these great villages.

Additional to the above, the commissioning of a fully accessible low-floor bus will ensure the relevance of the service for people with mobility issues. I would really appreciate if the Leader can arrange a debate with the Minister for Transport on rural transport in respect of villages all over Ireland. Gabhaim buíochas, a Chathaoirligh.