Call for action after no ambulance service available for major event in Offaly town

THERE was no ambulance available in Tullamore on Sunday last while a major event was taking place in the town with a large gathering in the Town due to the switching on of the Christmas Lights a local councillor has revealed.

Cllr Sean O'Brien said “the operation of the ambulance service in Tullamore and County Offaly is simply not acceptable and falls well below all standards.  On Sunday last there was no ambulance available in the county as the only ambulance on duty had to take a patient to a hospital in Dublin.”

“A major group of people were gathering in Tullamore for the annual switch on of the Christmas Lights.  Thankfully there were no emergencies but if there were they would have to wait for an ambulance to come from Galway or maybe Roscommon," outlined Cllr O' Brien.

He added: "While the Tullamore ambulance was in Dublin an emergency call was received on behalf of an elderly man in Daingean.  The Tullamore ambulance, while leaving the hospital in Dublin, was asked to respond to this call.  The call was received at 5.40 p.m. and the ambulance received the message at 6.02pm. 

"They then had to travel as fast as possible from Dublin to get to the incident where an elderly man was in severe distress and they arrived at 6.55 p.m. Thus it took one hour and twenty minutes to respond to this emergency call, just imagine how the patient and their family were feeling."

He revealed that while the ambulance was on the way an Advanced Paramedic was dispatched from Trim in County Meath and did not arrive before the ambulance. 

“This level of service is simply not acceptable and I repeat my call for an urgent review of the National Ambulance Service.  I am calling on the Minister to get directly involved here as the Management of the National Ambulance Service feel they are above scrutiny. 

"I had a motion before the Dublin Mid Leinster HSE Consultative Forum a few weeks ago and the Management of the National Ambulance Service did not even attend to listen to the debate and this is not acceptable as they are public servants.  The people of Tullamore and Offaly deserve better and I intend to pursue this matter until we get the level of service that we are entitled to" concluded Cllr O'Brien.