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THE ORDER OF Malta ambulance corps has started providing midnight cover on the Main Street of Maynooth, county Kildare.
At the request of local councillor Frank O’Rourke, the service is running as a pilot project on Saturday nights. Last weekend, seven members of the corps – including two qualified nurses – provided care to six people.
Two were attended to because of head injuries and another couple were seen to because of an “overindulgence” on alcohol, officer in charge David Wallace told TheJournal.ie.
Two people were subsequently transferred to hospital at the request of HSE Ambulance Control.
The medical crew and volunteers are on hand from 10pm to 3am on the busy street, popular with students attending NUI Maynooth and young adults from the surrounding North Kildare area. They aim to provide a first responder service for those who become acutely unwell or injured while on a night out.
The ambulance crew will take people in, assess them, treat if required and discharge. If something more sinister is detected, the patient can be stabilised and transferred to hospital by a HSE ambulance.
The service was set up after the recent tragic death of a young man who sustained a serious head injury and subsequently stopped breathing on Maynooth Main Street. Cllr O’Rourke hopes to try to prevent any similar events in the future.
At the time of the young man’s collapse, a volunteer member of the Nass Order of Malta unit was nearby and performed CPR. Unfortunately, he was not able to save his life.
The unit has liaised with the Gardaí and the HSE ahead of setting out last week. Wallace explained that seven volunteers are deployed to provide “safety in numbers”.
“These things are unpredictable,” said Wallace. “We are qualified to give advanced level of first aid and there is a qualified nurse to supervise the whole operation.”
This is the first scheme of its type in Ireland, although similar services do exist in the UK such as SOS Bus.
Although it is run on a volunteer basis, there are overheads to cover and Wallace is hoping that a number of local businesses will step up to support it.
Cllr O’Rourke has approached companies and publicans for support but for the moment he is covering some of the costs himself through a voluntary contribution.
He told TheJournal.ie that he wanted to get the project off the ground – something he has done just four weeks after he was first approached by the bereaved family.
Only 14 months into his first term, he said he treats any issues brought to him by the public with the same level of urgency.
He said the primary care facility that the Order of Malta supplies on a Saturday night is not a result of a culture of drinking or violence but is a necessity in a busy, populated area.
“People are out enjoying themselves. Sometimes, it can happen that they overindulge or over do it. In that case, back up is needed,” he said. “Anywhere where there is a large population and people are out having a good time, there may be an incident through nobody’s fault. It makes sense to have medics on hand as quickly as possible.”
He sees the project as a temporary primary care facility that could also assist in the bigger picture.
“It is magnificent that people can be assessed, treated and discharged right there. That may keep them out of GP offices and Emergency Departments. This project could prove very worthwhile and tick a lot of boxes.”
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RIP Johnny, You and The Horslips are the reason my band, Cruachan, exist! A legend, you’ll be sorely missed.
@Keith Fay: and Cruachán is a fantastic band..easy knowing The Horslips were a guide.
Irish guitar God! Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam!
Dearg Doom. Possibly the most recognisable Irish intro ever.
Ahh Jaysus that’s so sad, we all know the intro to Dearg Doom but his brilliant playing in Furniture The Snakes Farewell to the Emerald Isle and many others were so brilliantly haunting. He’s up there with Rory and Gary and sadly missed. RIP Johnny
One of the greatest. A very sad day. RIP Johnny
Sad day for Irish music , grew up with Horslips in the 70s , had the privelige of seeing them live in 77 , RIP Johnny .
Gutted, such a talent and a great loss. RIP Johnny
Sad to hear this. Saw Johnny and the boys many times growing up in Limerick, always a top show down at the Savoy. In that era he’d come out on his own for a solo, blast away on the Gibson and end it with an intro to Dearg Doom as the band kicked in and the crowd erupted. Remember him asking for a cigarette too once from stage and a virtual shower of them were thrown up for him. Different times, Horslips paved a path for so many that came after. Rock on Nightgown Boy.
Gutted. Ireland’s finest guitarist by a mile and easily among the best in the world. I’ll be waiting was an absolute gem…
Brilliant guitarist, will be sadly missed. I was so lucky to see them live a couple of times in the late seventies. Irish rock was so amazing. We had rory, lizzy, horslips on top of the world .
I am blessed I was able to bring my sons to see them in the 02 reunion tour.
Johnny and the boys rocked that night.
I loved Johnny’s playing. He was an integral part of what, for me, was Ireland’s best ever band. Back in the day, I travelled to see them on my Kawasaki whenever they played within a hundred miles of home. So many brilliant sounds, and absolutely loved the reunion gigs in 2009 (I think). Sincere sympathy to his family and fellow band members. May he rest in peace.
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