Mattie McGrath warns of paralysis in National Ambulance Service
Mattie McGrath criticised the National Ambulance Service, saying paramedics and first responders are suffering, leaving the service, and that response times and fleet problems are causing serious failures. He cited a 999 call in Tipperary that went unserved and urged an overhaul of operations and the call centre.
Main allegation
The speaker said the National Ambulance Service is "in paralysis" and that paramedics and first responders are suffering, leaving the service and "working with their feet." He said staff are not getting proper rest, leave or respect.
Specific incident cited
He described a recent incident in Tipperary in which "the Tamil Ambulance didn't serve one client," a 999 call that he said was sent as far away as possible. He used that example to illustrate how calls can be logged as responded to while the local patient waits.
Operational problems and patient impact
He warned the fleet and manpower are "burning out," crews are not finishing on time, and patients are often not told an ambulance could be two, three or four hours away. He called the situation "madness" and said it needs to be overhauled.
Call centre criticism
He argued the call centre does not understand the geography and accused the system of being a face-saving exercise by the National Ambulance Service rather than a reliable emergency response mechanism.
Minister's response and next steps
In reply, the Minister said he was not aware of anywhere in the country where an ambulance is routinely two or three hours away and asked for specific instances of significant delay. He said he would like the details and would pass them directly to the Minister responsible for further action.
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The National Ambulance Service is in paralysis, and the paramedics and first responders are suffering. They are leaving, they are working with their feet. The whole situation of responding to calls, emergency calls, is evaluated at the time a response was made. One day recently, in Tipperary, the Tamil Ambulance didn't serve one client, a 999 call in Tipperary, sent as far away as they are in Ireland. This is crazy. The fleet is burning out as well as the manpower, not getting their lift, not getting their leave, not finishing on time, and not getting respected for it. It is just frustrating that when you make a call, they will just get a call from anywhere, it could be 120, 40 miles away, and that is responded to them on paper, while the poor patient on the ground, or at home, or wherever he is, whenever he is injured, thinks the ambulance is on the way. They are not told that it is two or three or four hours away. This is madness, and it needs to be overhauled. The call centre does not understand the geography, and it is just a face-saving exercise by the National Ambulance Service, and it is totally unacceptable. Thank you, Minister. I am not sure there is anywhere in the country where there is an ambulance that is two or three hours away. I am not sure there is any part of the country where there is an ambulance that is two or three hours away. If that happens, it should not be happening, but if you have specific instances of significant delay times like that, I would certainly like to get the detail on that, and I will pass it on directly to the Minister. Thank you. Thank you.
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