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Today's Ambulance
Service 
Dublin Fire Brigade operates 12 emergency
ambulances in Dublin with all operational Firefighters rotating
from fire to ambulance duties. Firefighters are registered Paramedics
with the Pre Hospital Emergency Care Council.
Shifts are from 0900 to 1800 hours on days and 1800 to 0900 on nights
with the frequency of time spent assigned to the ambulance depending
on the number of personnel in the station.
Two Advanced Paramedic vehicles also operate on
a part time basis at present with Advanced Paramedic interns from
around the country travelling along as part of their internship.
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(Note: For a full explanation of the different levels of training
you should visit the Pre hospital Emergency Care Council's (PHECC)
site at www.phecc.ie
PHECC is the governing body for ambulance personnel in Ireland.
The Medical Director for the Dublin Fire Brigade
is Doctor Peter O' Connor the Accident and Emergency consultant
at the Mater Hospital.
The major advantage in having all personnel ambulance
trained is that a pool of over 100 personnel trained to Paramedic
level is available 24/7 as the need arises. This is very obvious
when responding to a Cardiac Arrest or a road traffic collision
(RTC) as all personnel can operate closely together understanding
what needs to be done for the patient and using true teamwork. At
any time should an ambulance require assistance for a lift or rescue
then fire engines and rescue units are available by contacting the
Eastern Regional Control Centre (ERCC), which is also manned by
operational Firefighters stationed in HQ.
Dublin Fire Brigade has achieved accreditation
under the I.S.O. 9001/2000 Quality Management System (International
Standards Organisation) for its ambulance service.
With Firefighters operating the ERCC a fire
engine and other vehicles are sent at the same time as an ambulance
if the situation requires them.
For example any cardiac arrest, non minor road traffic accident,
possible spinal injury etc. a fire appliance with up to five Paramedics
on board is dispatched automatically along with the ambulance.
These extra Paramedics means that a much greater level of patient
care can be given during procedures such as resuscitation or spinal
log rolls which require extra trained practitioners.
The extra personnel also can assist with lifting heavier patients
especially from upstairs or more inaccessible locations.
With all fire engines in Dublin carrying experienced Paramedics
and medical equipment such as defibrillators and oxygen therapy
patient treatment can begin immediately at Paramedic level by a
fire appliance crew, as they may often be the first on the scene.
Vehicles
Dublin Fire Brigade has an ongoing fleet
replacement policy to CEN compliant vehicles (pictured above). In
line with the idea of emergency use only, the ambulances currently
being purchased are single trolley only with two patient seats.
All ambulances in DFB are single trolley.
Training
The O' Brien Institute in Marino Dublin is the
training centre for the DFB and from 1995 all ambulance training
for the fire brigade has taken place there. Initially the course
for the EMT-B was started by the North Eastern University of Boston
Massachusetts (who have now withdrawn from Ireland) but the instructors
consist now mainly of a mixture of DFB tutors, external instructors
and lecturing doctors and consultants. In 2002 Dublin Fire Brigade
began a partnership with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland
called the DFB-RCSI Training Institute and it now provides our Paramedic
and emergency medical services training from the same location.
All ambulance crews in the Republic of Ireland operate under the
Pre-Hospitals Emergency Care Council's clinical practice guidelines.
The Paramedic Programme classroom component is
9 weeks fulltime and is followed by a PHECC multiple choice and
OSCE (practical) examination (1st exam). An undergraduate internship
consisting 4 weeks 3rd person supernumerary, 16 weeks attending
practitioner, 2 weeks clinical placement and 1-week trauma life
support course follows successful completion of the first exam.
At the end of the undergraduate internship the Paramedic intern
sits the final PHECC exam, which consists of a short written answer
and further OSCE (practical) examination. The Paramedic intern then
commences a yearlong internship during which they complete three
competency assessments and professional development modules. During
the undergraduate/internship the Paramedic intern will keep a learning
portfolio for return the certification authority.
In 2005 the Advanced Paramedic Training Programme
commenced in Ireland, several of these courses have taken place
to date, with members of Dublin Fire Brigade taking part along with
our colleagues from the Health Services Executive Ambulance Services.
Becoming an Paramedic with Dublin Fire Brigade
It is possible to become a Paramedic as an individual doing a course
with either Dublin Fire Brigade or the National Ambulance Training
School in the Phoenix Park. You should contact the training section
of either for up to date information.
Becoming
an Paramedic with Dublin Fire Brigade
It is possible to become a Paramedic as
an individual doing
a course with either Dublin Fire Brigade or the National Ambulance
Training School in the Phoenix Park.
You should
contact the training section of either for up to date information.
A
very short history
Formation
of the DFB Ambulance Service
From 1862 any fireman injured at a fire was
transported to hospital by the Brigades tool cart or hose wagon.
A tour of inspection in 1898 by the Chief Fire officer and a subcommittee
which took in brigades of England and Scotland gave the groundwork
to an improvement plan for the brigade which was presented by the
CFO Mr. Purcell to the corporation.
The corporation accepted the plan and began to implement it's recommendations.
 The
unhygienic tool cart as a medical transport was dropped and the
Corporation commissioned a horse-drawn ambulance and the firemen
were trained in first aid. A second ambulance was purchased in 1901.
The calls
that first year of operation stood at 537 and increased each year
along with the population of Dublin. 100 years later and Dublin
Fire Brigade had eleven emergency ambulances responding to over
90,000 emergency calls in 1999.
The ERCC receives over 90,000 emergency calls a year requesting
emergency medical assistance through the 112/999 system for the
Dublin area. (In 2007 this translated to 78,864 actual separate
incidents where 1 incident may require several ambulances.)
Dublin Fire Brigade
Paramedic
Training Program
The following is a general outline of the classroom
component of the programme
Obviously as protocols change and medical advances are introduced
this will change to some extent but it is here only to give the
reader a general outline of the course. Contact the DFB - RCSI Training
Institute for more information.
Hospital rotation is also a requirement
of the course with places in an adult & paediatric accident
and emergency departments as well as a coronary care unit and maternity
department placement
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Organization Structure
