Alison Comyn (Fianna Fail)

I want to raise an issue of serious concern today that was reported by one of my former colleagues, Mr. John Kierans, in the Drogheda Independent this week relating to ambulance cover in Drogheda and the wider north-east region. Paramedics quoted in the article say that Drogheda is regularly left without a local ambulance as crews are being dispatched long distances for non-urgent calls that could and should be managed differently. The core issue appears to be the advanced medical priority dispatch system, AMPDS, which paramedics say is over-triaging and sending highly trained emergency responders to calls for things like shaving cuts, stomach aches and high temperatures while real, time-critical emergencies go uncovered. This has created a real fear among front-line responders that a life-threatening emergency could occur with no unit available to respond quickly. Do not get me wrong, I know that the National Ambulance Service faces huge pressure, handling over 1,200 emergency calls per day. It has defended AMPDS on clinical grounds but the concerns raised here are credible and come from professionals working on the ground. An awareness campaign highlighting alternatives for patients would be timely. Patients can use GPs, go to their local pharmacist or use the doctor-on-call service. There is a misconception that getting an ambulance to an accident and emergency department will get a patient seen sooner but that is not always the case.

These issues deserve a constructive and transparent discussion. For that reason, I ask that the Minister for Health, Deputy Carroll MacNeill, come before the House to address these concerns, clarify how AMPDS is being monitored on a nationwide basis and assure communities in the north east and around the country that they will not be left exposed in moments of serious crisis.