Row over efficiency of ambulance service

THE AMBULANCE service in Co Monaghan has come under scrutiny after the death of a 65- year-old man who collapsed at a birthday party and died while waiting for the emergency services to arrive.

Michael Boyle, a native of Ballyshannon, Co Donegal, had been at a 60th birthday party for his sister-in-law at the community-run Sliabh Beagh hotel in Knockatallon when he suffered a suspected heart attack.

Campaigners, who insist it took 42 minutes for the ambulance to arrive, said the delay was unacceptable and has caused anguish for relatives who will never know if Mr Boyle would have survived if there was a speedier response.

Locals say the hotel is a 15- minute car journey from Monaghan hospital. The HSE say the ambulance arrived 37 minutes after the emergency call was made on the night of May 1st. There were two ambulances on duty in the county but, as both were engaged, a third ambulance from Dundalk, which was in Castleblaney at the time, was directed to Knockatallon, according to the HSE. Reacting to claims from the County Monaghan Community Alliance that patients were being put at risk in order to save money, the HSE said a review of the incident had been carried out by a chief ambulance officer from an outside region who was satisfied that “we acted prudently and appropriately”.

Pat Grant, chief ambulance officer for the northeast, hit out at “ill informed criticism” which he said affected the morale of the ambulance staff. “No matter how well one plans for the unforeseen, circumstances can conspire in such a way that may prevent the service responding as it would wish at all times.”

The HSE has confirmed that Mr Boyle was pronounced dead at the scene but has insisted “the issue of money or funding do not come into the equation” in relation to the incident.

Peadar McMahon, spokesman for the Monaghan alliance, and Mary Mullan, chairwoman of the community committee which runs the hotel, said the delay in the arrival of the ambulance was totally unacceptable and underlined the fears of the community just weeks before the hospital is expected to come off call.

Ms Mullan, who has lodged a complaint with the HSE, said, “The hotel is nine or 10 miles from the hospital so this is not acceptable in any circumstances.” Mr McMahon said the community had been promised a second ambulance and a first responder unit and these should be in place before the hospital goes off call.

The HSE said these were already in place and a third ambulance would be provided on a 24-hour basis as part of “the reconfiguration of services in Cavan/Monaghan”. It said the geographical spread and dense population of Co Monaghan provided challenges for the ambulance service, hence the deployment of additional resources.