Pictured: Deputy Joanna Byrne at her visit to Drogheda Ambulance Station on Tuesday, 27 th October, alongside NAS personnel John McKenna, Kathrina Murray, Linda Maher and Jillian Kinahan.
Significant improvement works have been carried out at Drogheda Ambulance Station, with local TD Joanna Byrne welcoming the changes following a visit to the station this week.
The Sinn Féin TD for Louth visited the ambulance station on Tuesday and said the condition of the building now stood in sharp contrast to what she had seen during her first visit in 2025.
This visit to our ambulance station stood in stark contrast to my first visit in 2025, where I saw firsthand the unsafe and unsanitary conditions our paramedics had to work in, Deputy Byrne said.
I was genuinely shocked and appalled,and left determined to have this addressed.
Range of works completed
The remedial works carried out at the station include a new roof, internal and external painting, new flooring and blinds, and a new water system.
A new gender-neutral bathroom has also been installed, along with improvements to the kitchen area.
The station now also has a new drug room to support the secure management of controlled drugs and a new CCTV system.
Deputy Byrne said the works had been needed in the short term while she continues to pursue the provision of a new ambulance station for Drogheda.
While I have consistently raised the need for a new Drogheda station with the Minister for Health and HSE Estates, and will continue to pursue this, in the shorter term, these remedial works were badly needed at our current Ambulance base.
I have to commend the local and regional NAS management personnel, past and present, for their determination to see these works undertaken and completed, particularly in such a short space of time.
Reflective room planned
Deputy Byrne said work is also progressing on a dedicated reflective room for paramedics at the station.
A lack of a dedicated quiet space at the station is something that many paramedics had raised with me, she said.
I am particularly pleased to see that works are progressing to now provide a reflective room for paramedics at the station in the near future, so that paramedics responding to traumatic incidents have a dedicated quiet supportive space in their station when needed.”
She said she hoped the improvements would provide paramedics with a safer and more comfortable working environment.
Our local paramedics are rightly held in the highest regard, and I sincerely hope that these remedial works now provide them with a safe and comfortable base to work from. It is the very least they deserve.
Deputy Byrne said she would continue to pursue the provision of a new station for Drogheda.
That said, I’ll be continuing to work with all stakeholders involved to work towards delivering a new fit-for-purpose Drogheda Ambulance station in the time ahead, and this remains a priority for me as a local TD.
