Girl (19) dies on 2 hour ambulance ride to hospital

Son Of A Vidic

hondasam wrote: »

Would she have survived if taken to Roscommon hospital?

If the 'Golden hour' principle of trauma care had of been applied in this case, it certainly would have greatly increased her chances of survival.

vicwatson

I'm sick **** of the people running this country into the ground

Let me fix that for you.

It's a small country, we are over-governed and they cannot get the simple things right, NO MATTER WHO SEEMS TO BE IN POWER, they fcuk up all the time.

corcaigh1

This is a ****ing disgrace, ****in idiots we have for politicians who cant stand up to the elite and this is the result of there cuts in basic services. Bastards.

christmas2012

So let me get this straight: There cutting services to the public who they are supposed to be representing.

..And paying themselves handsome salaries and pensions..while cutting everyone elses too..

Felexicon

It is the kind of screaming from the rafters without knowing what you're talking about attitude shown here that will stop this country from moving forward.

Son Of A Vidic

Felexicon wrote: »

True, but our goverment no longer has the power to make decisions about our health service.

Which was a decision that Lenihan and his fellow sheep decided to take at the time. So no, it's still no excuse.

seamus

Bad Panda wrote: »

You would think a f*cking ambulance would have GPS fitted, especially since they've to travel from Roscommon to Galway in an emergency!

I'm kind of torn on that one. I know my own GPS when you get out into the back arse of beyonds has a tendency to recommend a route which brings me down narrow country roads with grass growing in the middle, rather than taking me to the nearest N or R road and directing me from there.
This is most likely because the narrow road in question has a speed limit of 80km/h, so the sat nav thinks it's as fast as the 80km/h R-road.

So what do we do if a Sat Nav takes an ambulance down a very inefficient route because of poor mapping data, and someone dies? Most likely the driver would be lambasted for following the sat nav.

My sympathies to the family, but stories reported like this serve no purpose except to get people fired up. Accidents happens, people get injured and mistakes can be made. Sometimes people die. It's tragic. But unless anyone can point to any very specific negligent failure which resulted in this girl's death, then you're really getting worked up about a "**** happens" event.

I would hold most anger at the local who directed an ambulance down a poor route. If you don't know the route, just say you don't know!

humbert

Some people have said that Roscommon A&E couldn't have handled a serious case like this if it was there and she died 30 minutes from the hospital after a journey that took 30 minutes longer than it should.

More good hospitals is of course better but good treatment at fewer hospitals is arguably better than money being wasted on unreliable treatment in regional hospitals.


It's all dwarfed by the vast fortunes paid to banks and property developers but that's a different discussion altogether.

hondasam

Corvus Maximus wrote: »

If the 'Golden hour' principle of trauma care had of been applied in this case, it certainly would have greatly increased her chances of survival.

The hospital is saying she would not have survived and the family don't seem to be disputing that.
It's still not good enough but rural areas can be hard to navigate. I think this is just to highlight the hospital closure rather than the death of a young girl.

Yakult

Felexicon wrote: »

It is the kind of screaming from the rafters without knowing what you're talking about attitude shown here that will stop this country from moving forward.

How do you work that one out?

Felexicon

Corvus Maximus wrote: »

Which was a decision that Lenihan and his fellow sheep decided to take at the time. So no, it's still no excuse.

I'm not saying it's an excuse by any means. This kind of thing should never happen in a fully developed country like Ireland.
My point is that people screaming for Ministers heads is not going to work in this situation as the change we require is immidiate, and unfortunately our country was backed into a corner wereby our elected representitives no longer have the authorisation to perform the very tasks they were elected for

hardCopy

I agree with the principal of concentrating care in specialist hospitals.

The problem here is that the girl should never have been in an ambulance, she should have been airlifted.

Hospitals shouldn't have been closed until the necessary air ambulance cover was made available, never mind the fact that the ambulance shouldn't be relying on directions from locals to find Galway.

Bad Panda

seamus wrote: »

I'm kind of torn on that one. I know my own GPS when you get out into the back arse of beyonds has a tendency to recommend a route which brings me down narrow country roads with grass growing in the middle, rather than taking me to the nearest N or R road and directing me from there.
This is most likely because the narrow road in question has a speed limit of 80km/h, so the sat nav thinks it's as fast as the 80km/h R-road.

So what do we do if a Sat Nav takes an ambulance down a very inefficient route because of poor mapping data, and someone dies? Most likely the driver would be lambasted for following the sat nav.

My sympathies to the family, but stories reported like this serve no purpose except to get people fired up. Accidents happens, people get injured and mistakes can be made. Sometimes people die. It's tragic. But unless anyone can point to any very specific negligent failure which resulted in this girl's death, then you're really getting worked up about a "**** happens" event.

I would hold most anger at the local who directed an ambulance down a poor route. If you don't know the route, just say you don't know!

I know what you mean re GPS, but sometimes I use it just to point me in the right direction and I can find my way then. Or just for measuring distances.

Not necessarily saying go the GPS route, you need to make your own calls too to get there quicker if that's your goal, especially being an ambulance driver.

ejmaztec

Felexicon wrote: »

True, but our goverment no longer has the power to make decisions about our health service. The are now puppets to people who care little about the people of this country once there is a profit being made.

I think they have, or they wouldn't be talking about dismantling the HSE.

hondasam

seamus wrote: »

I would hold most anger at the local who directed an ambulance down a poor route. If you don't know the route, just say you don't know!

I'm sure the local knew the way but was crap at giving directions. It's not that backward of an area.

Rascasse

Corvus Maximus wrote: »

If the 'Golden hour' principle of trauma care had of been applied in this case, it certainly would have greatly increased her chances of survival.

If we read the article we see that:

"However, the service insists that, in its view, Ms Curley could not have survived the heart attack regardless of which hospital she attended.".

and

'In a letter to the family, outlining aspects of the case, a spokesperson said: "Our genuine belief from reviewing the literature nationally and internationally is that the survival rate for blunt traumatic cardiac arrest is approximately zero per cent and Roscommon or any other hospital could not have saved Elaine."

tmc86

Felexicon wrote: »

It is the kind of screaming from the rafters without knowing what you're talking about attitude shown here that will stop this country from moving forward.

So you're saying the country would move forward better if we all shut up and followed the country's leaders like sheep?

I think it is actually your attitude that will stop the country moving forward if we all sit back and agree with how the country is being run.

Also this is a public forum for discussion so if you can't "scream from the rafters" here then we haven't a chance

hondasam

hardCopy wrote: »

The problem here is that the girl should never have been in an ambulance, she should have been airlifted.

How much will this cost every time it's needed? It's not practical.

mikemac1

Google maps tells me the Erne Hospital in Enniskillen is 60km away, far closer then Galway

And the Erne Hospital has 24 hour A&E cover

Just wondering do the HSE and NHS cooperate up there? Seemed a possible solution

dlofnep

Felexicon wrote: »

It's horrible for the young girl and the family that are left behind.
But being honest an A&E service for Roscommon just weren't sustainable in the current economic climate.

But handing over billions to unguaranteed bondholders is? This is a travesty.

bijapos

BraziliaNZ wrote: »

Not the excuses you want to hear, but there are, the country is broke due to mismanagement and greed and corruption at the highest level

Felexicon wrote: »

It's horrible for the young girl and the family that are left behind.
But being honest an A&E service for Roscommon just weren't sustainable in the current economic climate. The only way of having more A&E deparments is the privatisation of the medical sector. We will then have people suffering because they can't afford to be taken to hospital.

A really horrible story to read though.

Being from Roscommon I'm the same mind as a lot of people in the county. The hospital should have been closed, the A&E should have been kept open. The hospital has turned into a glorified geriatric unit over the years, it's full of elderly people who can't go home, don't want to go home or aren't wanted at home by their own families, sad but that's the way it is.

Roscommon is a farming county, the most dangerous occupation of them all behind fishing. The idea of maintaining an A&E is to stabilise people like this girl before moving them on somewhere more suitable. I have two neighbours who were seriously injured on incidents on farms over the past 20 years, both taken to A&E, stabilised, and moved to Dublin later that night. Both survived, one would be dead if that happened today.

I accept that there are too many small hospitals in the country but what we need are smaller out patient clinics and A&E units.

Felexicon wrote: »

True, but our goverment no longer has the power to make decisions about our health service. The are now puppets to people who care little about the people of this country once there is a profit being made.

Bullsh1t. The government can make any decision they want on health and what to shut or keep open, the overall budget of the country must be run properly. No puppetry involved here, the decision to shut Roscommon A&E was made 100% by this government, not by Ajai Chopra, Angela Markel or any troika member.

mikemac1

mikemac1 wrote: »

Google maps tells me the Erne Hospital in Enniskillen is 60km away, far closer then Galway

And the Erne Hospital has 24 A&E cover

Just wondering do the HSE and NHS cooperate up there? Seemed a possible solution

In Dundalk depending on the injuries some people are given a choice between going to Drogheda or Newry so it happens sometimes.

JohnMarston

However, initial problems began when a local at the scene of the crash gave the ambulance crew directions which led them down a bogland road.

So, no GPS in ambulances, they have to rely on a local for directions

And sh*t directions at that :mad:

What kind of p*ss poor excuse is 'Ah sure, she wouldnt have survived anyway' ?

bijapos

bijapos wrote: »

Roscommon is a farming county, the most dangerous occupation of them all behind fishing. The idea of maintaining an A&E is to stabilise people like this girl before moving them on somewhere more suitable. I have two neighbours who were seriously injured on incidents on farms over the past 20 years, both taken to A&E, stabilised, and moved to Dublin later that night. Both survived, one would be dead if that happened today.

What kind of injuries? I thought the main thing that "trauma centres" had going for them for quick stabilisation allowing for quick treatment.

snubbleste

A 19 year old female is a woman, not a girl.

snubbleste

snubbleste wrote: »

A 19 year old female is a woman, not a girl.

That is the most important thing, I agree.

davet82

snubbleste wrote: »

A 19 year old female is a woman, not a girl.

great contribution

snubbleste

davet82 wrote: »

great contribution

Cheers, maybe consider editing the thread title to reflect the fact?

carbon nanotube

davet82 wrote: »

http://www.independent.ie/national-news/ambulance-service-apologises-after-girl-died-on-twohour-trip-3173479.html

Elaine Curley (19), from Creggs, Co Roscommon, had internal bleeding and died during the two-hour journey.

The teenager was just 15 minutes away from Roscommon Hospital when she was involved in a car crash, but was brought instead to Galway due to the closure of the A&E department in Roscommon.

I hope these cuts are worth it lads :mad:

Makes you ashamed to be Irish, thats third world stuff. Wouldn't happen in Thailand

Bad Panda

snubbleste wrote: »

A 19 year old female is a woman, not a girl.

I'm glad we're focussing on the real issues here.

Even by AH's standards, this post is f*cking retarded giving what we're discussing.