Junior Health Minister Kathleen Lynch is denying that it took 48 minutes to get an ambulance to an injured jogger in Letterkenny last week.
The issue was raised in the Seanad by Senator Jimmy Harte, who said the injured person was left lying on the road while waiting for an ambulance to come from Carndonagh, even though the injury happened less than two kilometres from Letterenny General Hospital.
Minister Lynch said the official logs show that ambulance control in Ballyshannon logged the call at 29 minutes to eight, and because both on duty Letterkenny crews were busy, and ambulance was tasked from Carndonagh, which arrived 24 minutes later at five to eight.
However, Senator Harte said assuming it takes three to four minutes to contact and brief the crew, getting to Letterkenny from Carndonagh should take much longer………..
Responding, Minister Lynch said while the ambulance was based in Carndonagh, it’s not clear where it was when the call came through. She also said if the nature of the emergency was more serious, a different response would have ensued………..
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