The late Maura Porter
DONEGAL Deputy Joe McHugh has demanded an independent investigation into the death of a pensioner who died after it took an ambulance 50 minutes to reach her as she lay dying on a road after being hit by a car.
Maura Porter died on the night of December 30, five hours after being hit by a car in Carndonagh while she was out for a walk to a local church.
Deputy McHugh has also asked Health Minister James Reilly to find out why a coast guard helicopter which was at nearby Malin Head was not tasked to the scene of the accident – an ambulance was instead sent from Letterkenny.
Deputy Joe McHugh met the Porter family to discuss the case.
He said he passed his deepest sympathies to the Porter family and has now called on the Minister for Health, Dr James Reilly, to set up an independent review to establish what happened in the case of Mrs Porter.
Deputy McHugh is also calling for clarity on the issue of whether ambulance responses in Donegal are in line with HSE or HIQA guidelines and standards of conduct.
Commenting on this, Deputy Joe McHugh, T.D. “I want to express my sincerest sympathies to the Porter family on the tragic loss of their mother and wife, Maura Porter.
“It is a painful thing to lose a family member, and to do so under these circumstances is a further grief that this family has to endure.
“I have written to the Minister for Health, Dr James Reilly, asking for a full and independent review into the circumstances surrounding Mrs Porter’s death.
“I have also highlighted to the Minister that I believe it is necessary to review and analyse the ambulance services overall.
“This review should include waiting times, drop off delays, link up with helicopter coast guard services and include a clear and concise view into how the hospitals in both Donegal and Derry are working together with the ambulance services to ensure that people are not waiting longer than necessary to receive treatment.
“In addition to this, I have submitted questions to the Department of Health, requesting confirmation that ambulance responses in Co. Donegal follow internal HSE guidelines or the pertinent HIQA standards and if the Minister will outline HSE plans to improve national consistency in response times.”
His call comes after unions representing ambulances admitted staff were over-stretched, under-resourced and often didn’t send the right type of medical crew to the scene of incidents.