Vol. 469 No. 2
70 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Health the distinction which is drawn between 999 calls made for the fire service, the Garda Síochána and the ambulance in terms of the urgency of response needed, further to his reply to Parliamentary Question No. 196 of 25 July 1996. [17119/96]
72 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Health the distinction which is drawn between 999 calls made for the fire service, the Garda Síochána and the ambulance in terms of the scene that they come across in the case of, for example, a serious road traffic accident, further to his reply to Parliamentary Question No. 196 of 25 July 1996; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17121/96]
Limerick East): I propose to take Questions Nos. 70 and 72 together.
All emergency calls are received in the first instance by Telecom Éireann operators and are then routed to the appropriate emergency service. The priority afforded to calls for the Garda and the fire services is a matter for those services.
All 999 calls received by the ambulance service are treated as emergencies requiring an immediate response.
Calls relating to the routine transport of patients, which represent a large proportion of the ambulance service work-load, are not routed through 999 service and are dealt with on a non-emergency basis.
