Concern is being expressed by local representatives in West Clare after the nearest ambulance to an elderly man who was suffering a heart attack was 80km away.
The man subsequently died after the incident which occurred last month.
The National Ambulance Service has confirmed it received a call for help at 9:41pm on the night of August 3rd, in relation to a man in the Cappa area of Kilrush.
As the ambulance on duty in Kilrush was attending another incident in Kilmihil, the nearest available ambulance was 80km away and help in the form of rapid response vehicles did not arrive until 10:17, 36 minutes later.
In the meantime, the National Ambulance Service has said ‘pre-arrival assistance’ was offered over the phone to those who had made the call.
Cathaoirleach of the West Clare Municipal District and trained first responder Ian Lynch attended the call and says it’s extremely concerning that they’re being left without a sufficient health system:
It’s not the first time that the spotlight has been shone on ambulance services in West Clare.
Several calls have been made at a county council level for a review of ambulance response times in the area, especially in the summer.
Cooraclare Fianna Fáil Councillor Bill Chambers says it’s crucial to have an adequate service then, when many more people are in the area.
NAS Response
The National Ambulance Service can confirm an emergency 999/112 call was received for the Kilrush area of county Clare at 21.41hrs on the 3rd August 2018.
The call was triaged using the internationally recognised Advanced Medical Priority Dispatch System (AMPDS). This system prioritises calls using internationally agreed procedures and protocols thus ensuring that life threatening and potentially life threatening calls receive an appropriate response.
The National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC) emergency dispatcher immediately dispatched the closest emergency ambulance which was supported by a rapid response vehicle (RRV) which arrived at scene at 22:17hrs. At the time of this incident the on duty Kilrush ambulance was engaged at an incident in Kilmihil, County Clare.
The emergency call taker remained on the phone and provided pre arrival assistance to those at scene and identified at 21:51hrs that the patient was in cardiac arrest.
The local community first responders and local fire service were immediately notified.
The National Ambulance Service offers its condolences to the family of the patient.
