A REVIEW OF the National Ambulance Service by the Health Information and Quality Authority has revealed that a number of senior managers feel they do not have the adequate skills or training to carry out their work.

Skills and training 

Speaking on RTÉ’s This Week programme, HIQA’s Chief Executive Phelim Quinn said that following a number of interviews with senior members of the service, it became apparent that some members felt they had been appointed to positions within the service without having the “appropriate competencies to carry out the jobs”.

“Seeing as this is a significant public safety service, this gave us cause for concern,” said Quinn.

Following the review, HIQA has recommended that there be a review off all job descriptions of management and supervisory positions within the ambulance service. 

He said that key accountability needs to be in place, adding that a number of senior managers “gave us the impression that they had some degree of discomfort in the jobs they had found themselves in”.

HSE 

He said he could not confirm if managers had flagged their concerns with the HSE that they felt they needed more training.

Quinn said the review indicated that a number of appointments had been made within the ambulance service and that there was perhaps a lack of new people entering the service that would enable “fresh thinking”.

A statement read on air from the HSE stated that they had received the report from HIQA, adding that the appointment of positions within the service was done both by internal and external competition. They added that all employees have job descriptions as is HSE policy. They concluded by stating that the report would be considered.

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