Connacht Tribune
Emergency services require more coordinated protocols
The dysfunctional manner in which the emergency services across the county are dispatched is putting lives in jeopardy – according to the fire fighters themselves.
And now two Government departments are being asked to investigate how the emergency services operate – particularly in relation to serious road traffic incidents.
According to a spokesman for the County Galway Retained Fire Fighters, that in emergency situations, the ambulance crew are first to be alerted and then the fire service is summoned if required.
They make the argument that both should be on the scene at the same time as ‘every second counts in the event of a serious collision’.
Now, Deputy Ciaran Cannon is asking both the Departments of Health and Justice to outline the existing protocols.
He has been in touch with Galway County Council about the lack of co-ordination between the ambulance and fire services – but he was angry that he hadn’t received any response.
“There is absolute clarity needed on the official protocols that are in place for responding to emergency calls across County Galway,” he said.
“If a 999 call is received by the dispatch team making them aware of someone who is experiencing a cardiac arrest or has been involved in a serious road traffic accident, the team should be able to immediately arrange for the nearest emergency services to attend at the scene.
“It’s my understanding that this may not be the case and that vital minutes are being lost due to protocols that seem more intent on saving money rather than saving lives.
“All of our retained fire fighters based in our county towns have received specialist training as advanced cardiac first responders in addition to their fire and road traffic accident training,” the Galway East TD explained.
Deputy Cannon said that, in the event of someone experiencing a cardiac arrest, local firefighters are often the closest emergency service available – but there seems to be a reluctance on the part of the Council in dispatching them.
He added that it was often the case that the ambulance services were deployed further away than the local fire services and said that he wants the emergency protocols to be reassessed.
A statement issued to the Connacht Tribune by the County Galway Retained Fire Fighters says that vital minutes are lost by the failure to alert the local fire service in the event of an emergency call.
“If a call is made to 999 regarding somebody having a cardiac arrest, then the dispatch team will arrange for the ambulance, but if the dispatch know that it will be a long time before the ambulance gets to the scene, then they should contact the local fire service as they could be with that person within minutes and perform the necessary live-saving procedures,” it said.
“This is not happening at the moment, and we are aware of a few cases even in the last while where we were not called to a cardiac arrest and where the ambulance took over 40 minutes to arrive and in that time the person had died. “Every second counts when it comes to a cardiac arrest especially with regard to road traffic accidents. Often the ambulance gets alerted first and when they arrive at the scene, they often find that they need the fire service to cut the person out of the car.
“If the dispatch alerted both ambulance and local fire service at the same time, then one could help the other. Instead, valuable time is being wasted and lives are being lost due to a dysfunctional system.”
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
