Ambulance service confirms Donegal fire personnel can be deployed as first responders

The National Ambulance Service has confirmed that Donegal's fire and rescue service personnel can be deployed as first responders for cardiac arrest calls for the ambulance service. 

Donegal Sinn Féin TD Pádraig MacLochlainn has received the confirmation from the National Ambulance Service (NAS) after he raised the issue with the Minister for Health.

The TD has called on Donegal County Council to engage with the NAS and to ensure that trained fire and rescue service personnel across the county can be deployed to back up the ambulance service.

Last month, following a motion from independent councillor Michael McClafferty,  the council said the fire service is not resourced to provide a medical service to the public. The use of the fire service as first responders would mean the council would have difficulty in meeting its statutory obligations as a fire service, the council said.

Deputy Mac Lochlainn said that over the years, many fire and rescue service personnel across Donegal have raised their desire to back up the ambulance service in the county as emergency first responders. 

“Unfortunately this had not been facilitated by the National Ambulance Service and local authorities such as Donegal County Council,” he said.

“I believe that the geographic spread of our fire and rescue service personnel across Donegal is an ideal and vital backup for the ambulance service and their requests make sense. I had been advised that negotiations were ongoing at the national level when I raised this over the years and I am pleased to learn that this is now being advanced.

“I am advised by the NAS that the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council (PHECC) Priority Dispatch Standard does authorise the use of Fire and Rescue Service staff whom are trained as emergency first responders to respond to specific categories of emergencies in a co-response or first response capacity, but not in a transporting capacity.”

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The NAS said it is engaging with local authority fire services about utilising the fire services as emergency first responders to cardiac arrest calls across the country. 

In its response to Mr MacLochlainn, the NAS said most fire services are retained which means each callout carries significant cost to the local authority in question. 

“We understand that some local authorities have experienced a  significant decline in fire-related callouts which means that they have been able to re-direct resources to enable staff to respond to medical emergencies in a first responder capacity,” the NAS said.