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Tag Archives: paramedics

Advanced paramedics could relieve UHL logjam – councillor

ADVANCED paramedics should be permitted to use their clinical judgement to treat patients for non-life threatening injuries in their own homes when they deem this is safe and appropriate. That’s according to Councillor Cillian Murphy, who has claimed patients are being brought to the ED in University Hospital Limerick (UHL) for relatively minor injuries or illnesses, which could be treated elsewhere. However, the HSE West Forum member stressed because of the current HSE system ambulance personnel haven’t the authority to treat people in their own homes and must bring them to a public hospital. “If you have a patient that is transported in an ambulance for something that could be treated in a Local Minor Injury Clinic, and the ambulance is now gone from West Clare for three and a half or four hours, this could be very serious for someone with a life-threatening condition. “This also has an impact on overcrowding in ED after recent figures I obtained show …

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man treated after Ennis house fire

One man was taken to University Hospital Limerick (UHL) as a precaution following a house fire in Ennis on Sunday . Emergency services were called to the scene after 6pm on Sunday when a fire was reported at a house on the Tulla Road near the entrance to the Castlerock Housing Estate. Two units of the fire brigade, an ambulance and gardaí responded to the incident, arriving within minutes. When firemen arrived they found the house was smoke logged. Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus entered the house to check there was no one inside. They quickly located a fire in the kitchen area and brought it under control. It is understood the fire originated in the kitchen in the vicinity of the cooker. Firemen also vented the house by opening all the windows and by using positive pressure ventilated fans. This process involves using large petrol driven fans to blow fresh air into the dwelling and to get rid of any smoke. No major external damage was caused to the outside of the building. One man was treated at the scene by National Ambulance Service paramedics and was later taken to University Hospital Limerick (UHL) as a precaution. The Clare Fire and Rescue Service has categorised the incident as a relatively minor fire as there was no significant injuries or damage.   Dan Danaher  

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Paramedic shortage putting lives “at risk”

THE lack of 19 paramedics for the Clare ambulance service and the frequent withdrawal of the rapid response vehicle (RRV) from the county to deal with major trauma cases is putting “lives at risk”, a union has claimed. The chronic shortage of local paramedics to provide a safe service for emergency patients has come sharply into focus this week, in light of excessive overtime levels for ambulance personnel. The top 10 Clare paramedics were each paid, on average, €82,000 in 2013, to work exceptionally long hours, due to a chronic lack of ambulance personnel. This average figure is more than double the highest starting salary of €36,640 for a paramedic with over 11 years of experience. This expenditure, which included €550,385 in total overtime payments made to local paramedics two years ago, has placed the spotlight on “unsafe” levels of additional hours that are still being worked by staff, providing life-saving interventions. The National Ambulance Service (NAS) had declined to …

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