National Ambulance Service is not bailing charity air ambulance out
The National Ambulance Service is not going to bail the charity air ambulance out.
This is despite the fact that the Irish Community Rapid Response-run service it is in partnership with has been forced to slash its service from seven to five-days-a-week.
And after a fundraising campaign that only raised a fraction of its €400,000 target, the service now says it can only survive for another six weeks.
Although the National Ambulance Service (NAS) provides medical staff and coordinates the taskings, the charity needs €2 million-a-year to fund the helicopters, pilots, fuel and its airbase.
But the funds ran low and the charity struggled to get the public to donate money to pay for the service.
Indeed, by 3.30pm today, it had only managed to raise €35,513 of the €400,000 target the charity set for itself.
Of that, €16,623 was raised via a GoFundMe page
The NAS was keen to point out that it doesn’t just rely on the ICRR for emergency air support for its 999 ground fleet.
“It is important to note NAS continues to provide its ground service of emergency ambulance and air assets available (Aer Corp, Irish Coast Guard, ICRR) are an additional resource to the ground service,” a spokesperson said.
Earlier in the month, the Irish Examiner revealed Health Minister Simon Harris had told the HSE to save the Irish Community Rapid Response air ambulance.
It was the first indication the State might bail the charity out since the ICRR warned last December it would ground the service if it didn’t get a large injection of cash.
But a HSE spokesperson has now told the Irish Examiner: “The National Ambulance Service is not involved in the funding of the ICRR, which is a charity organisation.”
A Department of Health spokesperson said: “As requested by the Minister, the National Ambulance Service has engaged with Irish Community Rapid Response and is working with that organisation to ensure that every effort is made to protect service provision.
“The Minister urges both sides to further their efforts over the coming days.”
The ICRR said:
The Air Ambulance, has been reduced to a five-day-a-week service, with immediate effect to ensure the service can continue for another six weeks.
“However, this cost-saving measure is a temporary fix to ensure 6 weeks of continued service before the financial viability of the service is reviewed again.
Operations Manager for the charity funded service, Ruth Bruton added: “It is absolutely not ideal to have reduced lifesaving cover for the people of Ireland for two days per week.
“However, it ensures six weeks more service, which is six more weeks for the ICRR Air
"Ambulance to gain committed support to keep it flying.”
She said the ICRR Air Ambulance is estimated to fly 600 missions in 2020.
But, she added, with the reduced mission days to the service, there could be 184 missions that it will not be in a position to respond too.
The charity received a welcome funding boost from star jockey David Mullins, who rode Michael O’Leary’s Rule the World to victory in the Aintree Grand National in 2016.
Today, he thanked ICRR for airlifting him after a fall in Thurles Racecourse last October by presenting them a cheque for €12,000.
The 23-year-old broke his T12 vertebrae and clavicle and needed rapid emergency medical help after the fall.
“The ICRR Air Ambulance came to help me when I needed it the most, a serious fall like I had could have been life-changing,” he said.
