AARON KENT
Ambulances are being sent from Laois to cover a shortage in Waterford, only for them to be told to stand down once they are near the incident.
That’s the claim made by Laois TD Brian Stanley in Dáil Éireann, as he raised concerns over ambulance cover in the midland’s county.
“The ongoing problems with the National Ambulance Service are not being addressed,” said Deputy Stanley.
“Five vehicles are based in the county [Laois], with just two available most of the time. That is five nights of the week. On Monday and Tuesday nights, just one vehicle is available. This vehicle is often a long distance away, so if a serious incident arises, no ambulance is available to attend patients. This is happening on a regular basis in the county. I can list off several cases recently where that has happened,” he said.
“Crews in Laois can be sent to Dublin, Wexford, Wicklow, Westmeath and Waterford,” he explained.
“Often when they are almost at the patient's location, they are stood down and told to turn around and come back because another ambulance has just reached it,” Deputy Stanley added.
In reply to this An Taoiseach Micheál Martin thanked the Deputy for raising an important issue but he said he cannot run the national ambulance service.
The Taoiseach committed to asking the head of the national ambulance service to reflect on their service model.
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