Malcolm Noonan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

They certainly picked a good time to come in. It is great to see such a good contribution in the Seanad Chamber. The students are very welcome and I thank Deputy Duffy for bringing them here.

I am taking this question on behalf of the Minister for Health. It might have been preferable to use a hurling analogy, being a Kilkenny man, but it is okay; I will accept the football parlance. I thank Senator Cassells for raising the matter of the ambulance bypass protocols at Navan hospital's emergency department and welcome the opportunity to update the House. There are a number of ambulance bypass protocols in place around the country at this time and they are important to ensure patients receive the right care in the appropriate hospital, depending on their clinical needs. Our Lady's Hospital in Navan provides a range of inpatient and outpatient general medical, elective surgical and orthopaedic services, with a 24-hour emergency department service to which patients may self-present or be brought by ambulance. The HSE has advised that the current acute model of care at Our Lady's Hospital holds significant risks from a governance and clinical care perspective. The emergency department at Our Lady's Hospital currently has an ambulance bypass protocol in place for patients who have suffered a stroke, heart attack or major trauma, as well as those in need of paediatric and obstetric care. From 12 December, the HSE is enhancing this ambulance bypass protocol to include patients who are critically or seriously unwell, or likely to deteriorate. Following the enhancement, this cohort of patients will bypass the emergency department at Our Lady's Hospital and be brought to the closest appropriate hospital for their needs.

The decision to convey a patient to, or bypass, the emergency department at Our Lady's Hospital Navan will be made by the attending National Ambulance Service teams. The National Ambulance Service teams will assess patients, treat them as appropriate and transport them to the nearest appropriate hospital depending on their clinical condition. This change is expected to affect only a small number of patients. However, this small cohort of patients, who are critically and seriously unwell, require appropriate treatment urgently. This enhancement of the current ambulance bypass protocol will ensure these patients receive the most appropriate care as quickly as possible in the most appropriate hospital. Following the enhancement of the ambulance bypass protocol, ambulances will continue to bring patients outside of the critically and seriously unwell categories to the emergency department at Our Lady's Hospital Navan. The National Ambulance Service has put an additional 24-7 emergency ambulance and an additional intermediate care vehicle on the ground in Navan to support this change to the current ambulance bypass protocol.

I would like to reiterate that no decision regarding the HSE's proposal for the transition of the emergency department at Navan has been agreed. While recognising the very real clinical concerns, the Government is clear that several important issues, including additional capacity in other hospitals impacted and the continued ability of people in the Navan area to access emergency and urgent care, would need to be fully addressed before any proposed transition by the HSE could be considered.