Increases in ambulance response times across the region are "worrying and dangerous" says a local TD.
Deputy Pauline Tully has called on the Government to publish and fund a multi-annual workforce plan to double the number of paramedics and to increase both training and retention in the service. The Cavan /Monaghan TD was responding to data received by Sinn Féin health spokesperson David Cullinane from the National Ambulance Service through parliamentary questions.
The response reveals that within Cavan, Monaghan and north Meath the percentage of life-threatening incidents responded to within the target of 19 minutes has fallen from 80% in December 2019 to 70% in December 2022 for cardiac and respiratory arrest, and from 58% to just 33% for other life-threatening incidents. Deputy Tully said It is clear that the Ambulance Service is under serious strain and pressure, which is exactly what paramedics in Cavan, Monaghan and north Meath have been warning for years.
“A decrease in standards of this magnitude is dangerous. It is putting patients in Cavan, Monaghan and north Meath at risk, and it is forcing paramedics to work extremely long hours. That is not good for the individual paramedic, and many are concerned about the risk this presents to them, to patients, and to the public across Cavan, Monaghan and north Meath.
“The Government must take urgent action to address the crisis in the ambulance service so that patients in Cavan, Monaghan and north Meath can have confidence that they will receive help promptly when they need it. The Minister for Health must publish and fund a multi-annual workforce plan to double the number of paramedics and to increase both training and retention in the service. The solutions are there, and change can be delivered. “A serious plan is needed if the Ambulance Service is to reverse the trend and improve outcomes so that patients in Cavan, Monaghan and north Meath can get the urgent care they need when they need it. Sinn Féin in government would deliver the change needed to ensure the health service is fit for purpose" added Deputy Pauline Tully.
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