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Distraught mum had to be paramedic's driver 26.11.12

THE EFFECT of health cutbacks in Donegal has been brought into sharp focus after a mother was forced to drive her unconscious child and a paramedic to Letterkenny Hospital. Sinn Féin TD Pearse Doherty has expressed his shock at the incident which happened last week.
"An ambulance was dispatched with one advanced paramedic, who was driving the vehicle. At the scene, the paramedic made the clinical decision, based on the needs of the child, to travel back to the hospital in the back of a car driven by the mother of the young child," said Deputy Doherty.
“When I sought clarification from the HSE on this matter, it was confirmed that the advanced paramedic was indeed working on his own from 5pm to 8pm on the evening in question.
“It was explained to me that this was due to staff reporting sick and requesting force majeure leave at short notice. I would ask why alternative arrangements were not made to ensure that there were at least two paramedics available to respond to any emergencies."
The Donegal TD added: “It is completely unacceptable that a mother be required to drive her child to hospital in such circumstances, in a vehicle which is not adapted to the needs of the situation, simply because there is inadequate staff to drive the ambulance.
“It is my understanding that the paramedic in question requested that two paramedics who lived nearby be contacted to assist at the scene but this request was refused."
He added: This is the effects of budget cuts and austerity on our public services. Sinn Féin has been raising this very issue with the HSE for some time now and we clearly see the impact in this case.
“The circumstances of this case could have been tragic and as a parent of four young children myself, the potential outcome doesn’t bear thinking about." He called on the HSE to explain what happened and to put guidelines in place to ensure such an incident never occurred again.
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