The Trade Union SIPTU is calling on the HSE to abolish the practice of putting its full time paramedics on-call, as it fears the lives of ambulance drivers are being put at risk.
It comes after a paramedic in Cork crashed while on duty yesterday morning – amid claims he fell asleep behind the wheel, after working a 22 hour shift.
The HSE has launched an investigation into the incident which occurred in Castletownbere.
Luckily, neither the driver nor the passenger were seriously injured in the crash.
But Siptu health sector industrial relations organiser Ted Kenny says the case highlights the need for the on-call system for paramedics to be abolished.
