Thousands to protest ambulance cutbacks

Campaigners fighting changes to the West Cork ambulance service are planning a mass rally before taking their protest to the doors of Munster’s largest hospital.

They hope the rally will bring thousands of campaigners on to the streets ahead of a protest outside Cork University Hospital.

The HSE wants to move from the current on-call system, which it has described as “archaic”, to an on-duty system it says will ensure the ambulance service can meet strict Hiqa guidelines on response times.

The new system will see paramedics and advanced paramedics rostered on-duty 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, with ambulances and rapid response vehicles being strategically located.

The West Cork SOS campaigners fighting the changes are concerned that just two ambulances will be left on call overnight to cover a broad region with a population of 82,000 — a claim the HSE has rejected.

Changes to the ambulance service, which have been introduced in East Cork, are being evaluated, and similar changes for North Cork are at an advanced stage.

The HSE said last night that any changes being considered in West Cork will not be implemented without public consultation.

“The final model of service in West Cork will be informed by the previous and current modernisation developments in East and North Cork, with particular cognisance paid to the geographical challenges the West Cork area presents,” a spokesman said.

Nonetheless, protesters are stepping up their campaign with a four-day rally from Skibbereen next Wednesday, which will culminate with a stretcher push to CUH on Saturday.

West Cork SOS chairman Frank Fahy said they want to highlight the “dire consequences” that will arise if the reconfiguration of the ambulance service goes ahead as planned.

“We urge people to meet up with the stretcher push team to protest the Government’s decision to reduce our vital ambulance service,” he said.

“We are strongly encouraging all people, including local councillors and elected TDs of West Cork to take part in this protest as the ambulance cuts concern all of us.”

Campaigners said the parking of an ambulance for the night and replacing it with a car that has no patient-carrying capacity is “sheer lunacy”.

“The HSE and the National Ambulance Service have been trying to confuse the issue by claiming that the ambulance will not be ‘removed’ from Skibbereen,” a campaign spokesperson said.

“This is technically true, but what they do not want to acknowledge is that it will be parked at night and replaced by a car that cannot bring a patient to hospital.”