HSE National Ambulance Service
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| Formation | 2005 |
|---|---|
| Legal status | Active |
| Headquarters | National Emergency Operations Centre, Tallaght |
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Region served
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Ireland |
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Leadership
|
Martin Dunne (Director) |
| Website | hse.ie |
| Remarks | Appointment: Minister for Health |
The National Ambulance Service (Irish: Serbhís Náisiúnta Otharchairr) is the statutory public ambulance service in Ireland. The service is operated by the National Hospitals Office of the Health Service Executive, the Irish national healthcare authority.
The Health Board Act 1970 allowed for the provision of an ambulance service by each of the eight boards for their respective area. The health board ambulance services operated independently of each other, being funded from their board budget. In 1986, the National Ambulance Training School was established to provide training to ambulance staff on a national level, catering for the progression of pre-hospital care and the development of skills in the ambulance service as a whole. This was the first step towards nationalisation of the service, however it was not until 2005 with the establishment of the Health Service Executive (HSE) that the new National Ambulance Service was established. With the new service being established, and with the new training standards implemented by the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council, the service acquired a national insignia, standardised uniforms, vehicles and equipment as well as a national recruitment process for staff. The National Ambulance Training School was renamed the National Ambulance Service College to reflect the new organisational structure.
The operational uniform consists of green cargo trousers with a white open-neck shirt bearing the ambulance service crest as well as high-visibility outerwear for night time and poor visibility conditions. Clinical grade is depicted by use of coloured shoulder sliders; green for EMT, navy for Paramedic, yellow for Advanced Paramedic & red for Control Room staff. The dress uniform is navy blue with a white shirt and peaked cap. All front line ambulances operated by the service are CEN compliant. They are yellow in colour with green and yellow battenburg markings along the vehicle. They are fitted with emergency lighting, scene lighting and array of antennas for radios and tracking systems. The ambulance saloon is fully insulated with environmental control. Equipment includes a CEN stretcher, cardiac monitor/defibrillator, suction unit, diagnostic equipment, trauma kits, resuscitation kits, medications and oxygen. Ambulances are also capable of securely holding an incubator in place of a stretcher.
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Wikipedia