Incidents lead to changes in 999 services
This was stated, yesterday, by the Health Service Executive (HSE) Southern Area, which said operating procedures for the ambulance control centre had been reviewed following internal investigations by the chief ambulance officer and senior HSE management.
The first probe arose from an incident following an emergency call for an ambulance on October 6 last, from a 48-year-old man who later died at his home in Killarney.
The man had made the 999 call after suffering what is believed to have been an asthma attack at his home in the Ballydribeen area, just off the northern bypass and the main Tralee road.
The ambulance, however, is understood to have gone to the wrong house in the estate.
The man was later found dead in his home and a post-mortem examination was carried out by the assistant State pathologist Dr Margot Bolster.
The second investigation arose from an incident in which there was a reported delay of several minutes in contacting an ambulance for a man who had had an epileptic fit in Tralee.
An HSE statement yesterday described both incidents as “serious”.
A review of standard operating procedures - protocols for taking and despatching 999 calls and training on equipment and systems - within the ambulance control centre has also been carried out.
“These standard operating procedures are being revised where necessary to ensure they are as comprehensive as possible and comply with best practice,” the statement said.
“The training initiative will see staff within the control centre revisiting all procedures (current and revised) in order to ensure the highest standards of service delivery are maintained at all times. A training programme has been devised and will be rolled out early in the new year.
“These investigations, conducted by senior management, have been treated with the utmost urgency in order to ensure serious incidents like these do not re-occur,” the statement added.
The statement said all staff within the Kerry ambulance service and HSE Southern Area management were committed to ensuring a professional and efficient service in Kerry from its control centre and six bases around the county.
The service deals with almost 8,500 calls annually, of which more than 5,100 are emergency/999 calls
An HSE spokesperson would not reveal last night if any disciplinary proceedings had been taken against the ambulance personnel involved.
“The necessary internal human resources procedures have taken place to deal specifically with these incidents,” the spokesperson said.
