First Aid for President Obama's Visit to Dublin - May 2011

Written by Patrick Rushe

Over forty unpaid volunteers from St. John Ambulance were deployed in and around College Green in the centre of Dublin City for President Obama’s historic visit. A crowd of in excess of 50,000 people gathered to hear the address by the 44th President of the United States of America.

We worked under the guidance of the Health Service Executive (HSE) and were joined by members from our sister organisations, the Order of Malta, the Irish Red Cross, and the Civil Defence. All organisations operated under the control of a Joint Voluntary Command Centre (JVCC), set-up specifically for this event and manned by representatives of all organisations.

The JVCC was set up at the Order of Malta Ambulance Corps headquarters on Clyde Road, close to the Embassy of the United States of America. 

Centralized control of the pooled resources of the voluntary organisations ensures an appropriate and timely response to all reported medical emergencies. It is the same approach that proved so successfully during inclement weather before Christmas, when Dublin City's Metropolitan Emergency Plan was activated in order to alleviate pressure on the city's emergency services due to an unprecedented increase in call outs.

St. John Ambulance operated four ambulances, a bike unit, and a number of cardiac first response foot patrols. On the ground, our members liaised with the Gardai and the United States Secret Service in order to gain access to casualties within College Green. Whenever possible, casualties were treated within the security perimeter in order to allow them to stay and enjoy the event as any casualty removed for treatment would be required to pass through security screening again.

As with any event of this nature, a major aim of the voluntary first aid and ambulance presence was to protect both the ambulance service and the city’s Emergency Departments from an increase in people presenting with minor wounds and illnesses. Simple on-site first aid is often all that is needed to help these casualties. Our volunteers provide this free of charge. Not only does this protect the city’s resources (and taxpayers’ money) for real emergencies, but it also allows casualties  with a minor problem avoid the €100 ED levy and a long wait.

To augment our capability to provide first aid on-site, our Mobile Treatment Unit was operational on Suffolk Street. This unit was crewed by an experienced team including a nurse specialized in Emergency Nursing Care.

In addition to the deployed personnel and equipment, four ambulances were on active standby at different locations around the city. St. John Ambulance maintains a large network of volunteers who can be mobilised in the event of a major emergency.

Providing first aid at public events of every size is critical to making the vision of the St. John Ambulance Brigade a reality; that everyone should have immediate access to first aid, no matter where they are or what they are doing at the onset of illness or injury. To this end, our unpaid volunteers provide first aid at hundreds of events throughout Ireland every year, and we have trained thousands of members of the public to render first aid. We have been at the service of the people of Ireland for over 100 years.

If you are interested in volunteering, or you are an event organiser and would like to arrange first aid cover, please contact us.