Tony McLoughlin (Sligo-North Leitrim, Fine Gael)
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Question 180: To ask the Minister for Health the benefits the new Aeromedical Ambulance based in Athlone, County Westmeath, will have for the Sligo/Leitrim West Cavan area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31057/12]

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The purpose of the pilot Emergency Aeromedical Service is to determine the extent, if any, of the need for dedicated aeromedical support to emergency ambulances in the region, in light of existing road networks and transit times, and how it might best be provided in the longer term.

The primary focus of the service is in the west and northwest, including the requirements of HSE Clinical Care Programmes such as Acute Coronary Syndrome and Stroke. To date, a number of patients have already benefited from the availability of this service. In particular, I note that patients suffering a Heart Attack or a Stroke in the area referred to and whom may benefit from best treatment options for such emergencies would now fall within the specific timeframe to access this treatment. This may not have been possible without this service.

Notwithstanding this, the service may on occasion respond to incidents elsewhere, where aeromedical assistance is an appropriate response, given the circumstances of the incident. A recent example saw a patient with serious head injuries flown from Co. Laois to Beaumont Hospital.

The EAS will be dispatched on request by attending paramedics at the scene of an incident where the transit time for a patient would be clinically unacceptable. This presents significant benefits to patients in the Sligo/Leitrim/West Cavan area who may benefit from rapid access to high level care. On receipt of a call from NAS Paramedics on the ground, a deployment decision will by made by the National Aeromedical Co-ordinating Centre and will depend on a range of factors, including the nature and severity of the patient's condition, the location of the incident and the distance to the nearest appropriate facility.