SIPTU has called on the Health Service Executive (HSE) to place the utmost emphasis on the health and safety of its employees and ensure that the circumstances that led to the death of a paramedic in 2010 are never repeated. The call follows the Dublin District Court imposition of a €500,000 fine yesterday (Thursday, 27th June) on the HSE for health and safety breaches in relation to the death of paramedic, Simon Sexton.Simon died on 3rd June 2010, when he fell from an ambulance during an emergency patient transfer on the N3 near Cavan town. He was a member of the paramedic staff at the ambulance base located on the campus of Cavan Regional Hospital and of SIPTU. SIPTU Health Sector Organiser, Paul Bell, said: “Simon was a highly regarded member of the ambulance service and his death greatly shocked his colleagues.“The Health and Safety Authority has carried out a full investigation into the circumstances surrounding Simon’s death and the courts have also imposed a considerable fine on the HSE. However, it remains to be seen whether these sanctions will result in the necessary organisational change that ensures such a tragic incident does not occur again.“As well as expressing our sincere sympathies to Simon’s family our key concern is ensuring that change is implemented in HSE health and safety procedures to ensure such a tragedy is not repeated.”
SIPTU calls for action to ensure death of paramedic is never repeated
