Trouble Brewing Between the Fire Brigade and Council

Management
SIPTU members of the Dublin Fire Brigade have served a notice of a ballot for strike action, and
IMPACTis apparently considering doing the same.
The issue, according to a SIPTU press release, is a refusal by the senior management of Dublin City
Council to resource an additional four ambulances to meet service demands in the city.
This appears to be part of a long-running debate over whether (and, if so, how) the Dublin Fire
Brigade (DFB) and the National Ambulance Service (NAS)should combine some services such as
their call-and-dispatch services.
At the moment, the NAS serves the entire country while the DFB serves only Dublin; the NAS
operates its call-and-dispatch service out of Tallaght, the DFB out of Tara Street.
Back and Forth

In February 2014, theIrish Times noted that therehave

long been calls to amalgamate the Dublin Fire Brigade service into the ambulance service as it could
save 3 million per year.
Later that year, aHIQA reporthighlighted a number of areas where the NAS and the DFB could
coordinate better.
As a matter of urgency, it is important for both organisations to work together to better coordinate
services, and make best use of their collective resources, said the report.
The Health Service Executive and Dublin City Council moved towards transferringthe DFBs call-an-dispatch serviceover to the NAS, on the back of the2014HIQA report. But the plan was later pulled
to allow for consultation.
In 2015, the former DFB Chief Stephen Brady chaired a forum that had to evaluate HIQAs
recommendations, and design a model that would meet HIQAs requirements and supply an efficient
ambulance service to Dublin.
After the forum, an expert-panel report recommended that Dublin Fire BrigadesEMS system be

retained and that Dublin Fire Brigade take charge of all 999 calls in the city.It also recommended
that funding should come from the Department of the Environment rather than the HSE.
Unresolved
An amalgamation of the call-and-dispatch services is an ongoing concern, says Labour Councillor
Alison Gilliland.
There is a suspicion that [Dublin City Council Chief Executive] Owen Keegan wants to relieve DCC of
the responsibility of EMS and perhaps fire services or possibly contract their services as opposed to
have them as an integrated public service across the local authorities, she said.
I would be completely opposed to this as the fire-based EMS plays an integral role in servicing our
communities, she said.
The fire service is one of the largest parts ofDublin CityCouncils 862.5 million budget, accounting for
more than 110 million.
Integrated System
Supporters of adding ambulances to the DFBs fleet, and leaving it with its own call-and-dispatch
system point to itssystem of cross-training.
Unlike most servicesaround the country, Dublins fire officersare also trained paramedics, while
others are advancedparamedics. So DFBs firefighters and ambulances work closely together,
andwith the call-and-dispatch system.
The fire-based EMS is in operation across North America and Europe, says SIPTU representative
Brian Murray. If you remove any leg of the EMS stool, its going to collapse, includingcall-taking.
We [the DFB] can shoot a huge amount of trained and skilled personnel into a major incident very
quickly. No other organisation within the state can do that, he says.
Green Party Councillor Patrick Costello agrees. Its considered best practice and major cities are
moving towards [fire-based EMS] as a model of practice, he says. Undermining it and moving away
from it is the wrong thing to do.
At times, though, the fire brigade has to rely on the NAS for ambulances as its fleet currently stands
at 12 vehicles, says Costello.
Council Action
At last weeks monthly council meeting, Labour Councillor Alison Gilliland submitted a motion which
was approved calling on themanagement of Dublin City Council to immediately request four
additional ambulances for DFB from Fine Gael Minister Simon Coveney.
Murray says that the four extra ambulances for the DFB-EMS are still not forthcoming, but it is
something Labours Gilliland says that she will continue pushing for, including at a meetingon 26
January of the councils committeefor Fire and Ambulance Services and Emergency Management.
I would hope that we would have a response from Ministers Coveney and Harris for that meeting. If

we are not happy with the action I will be proposing a meeting with the ministers, she said.
Dublin City Councils press office did not respond to queries relating to Dublin Fire Brigade, its
possible call-and-dispatchamalgamation with the NAS and if there were plans to provide four extra
ambulances.
http://www.dublininquirer.com/2017/01/18/trouble-brewing-fire-brigade-council-management/