Ambulance regulator (article from the journal)

paraletic

@david hall

I see you on 'the jounal'' claiming that the ambulance service is unregulated!

David. I respect all the good work you do for charities and I respect you for being a good business man, but I find it hard to believe your spiel. (Mainly because you are such a shrewd business man).

http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/ambulance-regulation-lifeline-david-hall/

I assume this article is mainly targeted at you competitors, however I don't know much about them so I don't want to comment on them.

I believe the public ambulance service (HSE/DFB) are under HIQA and of course PHECC (yes I know PHECC aren't regulators, but they do set standards)
Maybe PHECC should be given the responsibility of regulating all aspects of prehospital services?

The public ambulance have education and competency teams, good vehicles, safe working standards, and vetted employees (all i have met have been vetted) etc. They do a good job and the HSE is constantly trying to improve.

I worked for your company before and I can honestly say that on the whole it is well run, safe and most of the staff were great, but some of the staff shouldn't have been allowed near a patient. And on occasion (rarely) I had to work with a crew mate who had no licence for the vehicle and I would have to drive long hours around the country with nobody to relieve me. But worst of all, I never had an interview, I was not vetted when I started working for you (I cant remember for sure if I ever got vetted by your company) and I never had to show you any certificates or proof of a qualification EVER.

I found it hard to read your full colum because I have read some of your other opinions and all I ever taken from them is that you have an alterior motive (your business).

I always enjoyed working for your company and I honestly believe that you run a good business (and you probably run things differently now than when I worked for you) so I wish you well.

Oh - but, I hope you never run a helicopter service, i have memories of 2 separate doors falling of 2 seperate ambulances, imagine the headlines!!

Delancey

An interesting article David Hall writes though it appears he suggests there should be a new Independent Regulator.
That sounds like a QUANGO - we have far too many in this country already - the Health Care system is already infested with them , they cost a fortune to run and impose additional costs on businesses - we need to ' cull ' them not add to them.

Mycroft H

Delancey wrote: »

An interesting article David Hall writes though it appears he suggests there should be a new Independent Regulator.
That sounds like a QUANGO - we have far too many in this country already - the Health Care system is already infested with them , they cost a fortune to run and impose additional costs on businesses - we need to ' cull ' them not add to them.

We already have the regulator - PHECC. There is no need for additional quangos at all.

Perhaps there needs to be more rigorous inspections carried out by PHECC above what is already carried out by cpg inspections.

I can only speak for one of the major voluntaries, drugs are checked, ambulances are roadworthy, hygiene standards are implemented etc etc.. I would not be afraid of inspections there.

I would like to see the PHECC Inter facility transfer standards implemented more rigorously.

ivabiggon

I for one would have to agree with Mr. Halls article, it is true that i can go out tomorrow, buy a second hand ambulance from England bring it in here and drive comfortably around with my new logo on it, transfer patients and charge for it, spin up and down bus lanes, scream through traffic and no one can stop me.
I work in the dfb, i'd have the qualifications and my phecc cpd's done.... and sure if something drastic happens on my first day of business, such as crash, write off an ambulance or seriously injure a patient via malpractice or driving... i can just shut up shop and change my logo and van and restart over a weekend???

says it all really, Phecc unfortunately do not hold any power over service providers only individuals who have voluntarily signed up to they're way of doing things, if you are one of the few and there are some who never signed up to phecc, as they're was no legal requirement!! well who do you answer too, who is going to check you, who has the power to say hey can i see your patient report form for that last patient and take a look at the inside of your ambulance......... devils advocate here.....if i was an underhanded operator, i'd tell any one to shag off!!! if they tried to approach my ambulance, as I don't have to answer to anyone.

paraletic

ivabiggon wrote: »

I for one would have to agree with Mr. Halls article, it is true that i can go out tomorrow, buy a second hand ambulance from England bring it in here and drive comfortably around with my new logo on it, transfer patients and charge for it, spin up and down bus lanes, scream through traffic and no one can stop me.
I work in the dfb, i'd have the qualifications and my phecc cpd's done.... and sure if something drastic happens on my first day of business, such as crash, write off an ambulance or seriously injure a patient via malpractice or driving... i can just shut up shop and change my logo and van and restart over a weekend???

says it all really, Phecc unfortunately do not hold any power over service providers only individuals who have voluntarily signed up to they're way of doing things, if you are one of the few and there are some who never signed up to phecc, as they're was no legal requirement!! well who do you answer too, who is going to check you, who has the power to say hey can i see your patient report form for that last patient and take a look at the inside of your ambulance......... devils advocate here.....if i was an underhanded operator, i'd tell any one to shag off!!! if they tried to approach my ambulance, as I don't have to answer to anyone.

What you say is all true.

I think my problem with the article is that mr hall is a business man. I think his bottom line is profit and not standards. (I don't want to knock his company though, because it is probably above board and his employees are mostly excellent).
I feel that writing a colum about being concerned about other providers standards to sell your company in the media is a bit tacky. Just pay for an advert.

We have HIQA. We have PHECC. We have the health and safety authority. Can any or all of those agencies not Enforce high standards? HIQA and the HSA have a bit of power (I think).

Any good solutions?

sgthighway

What regions of the HSE contract out to Private Companies?

Delancey

paraletic wrote: »

We have HIQA. We have PHECC. We have the health and safety authority.

Exactly , we don't need yet another state funded body to add the load already in the Health Service - add in the Medicines Board , The Pharmacy Registration Authority , An Bord Altranais ,The Radiological Protection Board ( we need protection from x-rays ! ) ....the list is almost endless..........

Mycroft H

sgthighway wrote: »

What regions of the HSE contract out to Private Companies?

There is an OMAC unit down in Waterford/Wexford that accepts the occasional call from the HSE.

Apart from that, the likes of Medicall/Lifeline/Murray etc have all accepted transfers at one time or another.

Louth EMT

This man is just full of his own self importance.

rahin man

and a man not getting his own way since a fella in naas got sent home to derry;)