The Order of Malta Ireland – Ambulance Corps is a

voluntary Voluntary may refer to: * Voluntary (music) * Voluntary or volunteer, person participating via volunteering/volunteerism * Voluntary muscle contraction See also * Voluntary action * Voluntariness, in law and philosophy * Voluntaryism Volunt ...

ambulance An ambulance is a medically-equipped vehicle used to transport patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport. Ambulances are used to respond to ...

and

first aid First aid is the first and immediate assistance given to any person with a medical emergency, with care provided to preserve life, prevent the condition from worsening, or to promote recovery until medical services arrive. First aid is gener ...

organisation An organization or organisation ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is an entity—such as a company, or corporation or an institution ( formal organization), or an association—comprising one or more people and having a pa ...

operating in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

in affiliation with the

Sovereign Military Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, and commonly known as the Order of Malta or the Knights of Malta, is a Catholic lay religious ...

, founded in 1938. Its purposes include teaching

, providing ambulance cover at large events, medical aid, patient transport, and community and

nursing Nursing is a health care profession that "integrates the art and science of caring and focuses on the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and human functioning; prevention of illness and injury; facilitation of healing; and alle ...

services. The Sovereign Military Order of Malta has over 5,000 volunteers throughout the island of Ireland. Its headquarters are located in Saint John House, 32 Clyde Road,

Ballsbridge Ballsbridge () (from historic Ball's Bridge) is an affluent neighbourhood of the city of Dublin, the capital of Ireland. The area is largely situated north and west of a three-arch stone bridge across the River Dodder, on the south side of the ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

4, Ireland.

History

The first unit of the Order of Malta Ambulance Corps was founded in 1938, when Conor O'Malley, a Galway doctor, was asked by Marquis McSweeney, the then chancellor of the Irish Association, to recruit members to form an ambulance corps, aimed initially for Connaught only. Thirteen men were recruited by Professor O'Malley: six sixth year students from St. Josephs College "the Bish", Secondary School; four members from C.Y.M.S., Galway ; two Scout Masters; and one "lay" member. These thirteen members were the founding members of the ambulance corps in Galway. The new recruits were enrolled on a series of First Aid lectures, given by Professor O'Malley in the X-Ray Department of the Central Hospital . The bandaging was taught by Theatre Sister Mary Shaughnessy. Examinations in First Aid were held in January 1938 and all were successful. In February 1938 First Aid services were requested for a National League match in Castlebar. The duties were allocated in alphabetical order meaning "Burke" and "Coogan" were first on duty. The first Officer in Charge of the Galway Unit was Sgt. Timothy Murphy. A second unit was set up in 1939 in Killarney and since then the Ambulance Corps has grown in strength providing First Aid cover for many major sporting and cultural events and concerts.

Modern organisation

The Ambulance Corps is a national organisation with 5,346 members involved in 86 units across the Island of Ireland. For administration purposes, the country is divided into regions which are managed by regional directors. Each region consists of a number of units which deliver services at local level. The organisation operates over 170 ambulances, mobile accident and emergency suites, support vehicles, medical response bikes, Rapid Response Vehicles (RRVs) and mobile command and control centres. The Ambulance Corps uses the TETRA Radio system in line with the statutory emergency services in Ireland. Order of Malta Ireland - Ambulance Corps Cadets

Order of Malta Ireland - Ambulance Corps Cadets

The organisations headquarters are located in St John's House Clyde Road,

4. Within the building there are modern lecture halls for training and a command and control centre to coordinate vehicles and personnel in the event of major incidents. Order of Malta Ireland Ambulance Corps

Through their youth section, Order of Malta Cadets accommodates children aged 10–16 years. Cadets are trained in basic life saving skills: first aid, CPR and assisting with activities of daily living. The organisation provides a full program of youth development and sporting activities for young people and encourages them to continue developing their citizenship skills. Additionally, cadets are involved in the community helping the elderly and disabled both locally and internationally. Order of Malta Ireland - Ambulance Corps

The ambulance corps coordinate a range of community care services including day care centres, community care centres and centres for older people. They also provide essential respite for young disabled people at their purpose facilities in the Share Holiday Village. The ambulance corps assist pilgrims to Knock, Croagh Patrick and Lourdes annually. Order of Malta Ireland is a registered as a charity in the Republic of Ireland as Malta Charities, CHY4538. Malta Charities is accepted as a charity in Northern Ireland by HMRC under reference XR40765.

Senior members

The national director of the Order of Malta Ambulance Corps is Comdr. Brian Coote, KM. In common with all members of the Ambulance Corps, Coote is a volunteer. He is assisted by two deputy directors, David Birchall KM and Bernard Guthrie KM, Chief Medical Officer Dr. Lisa Cunningham DM, and a staff with responsibility for different areas of ambulance corps work. The president of the Irish Association of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta is Richard Duc de Stacpoole, KM, who succeeded Sir Adrian FitzGerald, Bt., the Knight of Kerry, KM.

Ranks

Cadet ranks (ages 10–16) *

Cadet A cadet is a student or trainee within various organisations, primarily in military contexts where individuals undergo training to become commissioned officers. However, several civilian organisations, including civil aviation groups, maritime ...

(Red Epaulette) * Cadet

Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...

(Two downward facing chevrons) * Cadet

Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

(Three downward cheverons) Adult ranks (ages 16+) * Volunteer (Red Epaulette) Non-commissioned officers ranks *

(two downward chevrons) *

(three downward chevrons) *

Adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

(three downward chevrons and a gold Malteser pip) Commissioned officers ranks * Second Lieutenant (one pip) *

First Lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

(two pips) *

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

(three pips) *

Commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

(not Major) * Assistant Commander (not Lieutenant Colonel) *

Commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...

(not Colonel) * Assistant National Director * Deputy National Director * National Director Volunteers wear epaulettes with a

Maltese Cross The Maltese cross is a cross symbol, consisting of four " V" or arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals converging at a central vertex at right angles, two tips pointing outward symmetrically. It is a heraldic cross variant which develope ...

while members holding a rank wear an epaulette with the Maltese Cross plus rank markings on the shoulders of the uniform. Different colour epaulettes are used to denote various medical qualifications and if a member is a member of the

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

. * Red for members trained as cardiac first responders, First Aid Responders, and Emergency First Responders * Green for

Emergency Medical Technicians An emergency medical technician (often, more simply, EMT) is a medical professional that provides emergency medical services. EMTs are most commonly found serving on ambulances and in fire departments in the US and Canada, as full-time and some ...

* Navy Blue for

Paramedic A paramedic is a healthcare professional trained in the medical model, whose main role has historically been to respond to emergency calls for medical help outside of a hospital. Paramedics work as part of the emergency medical services (EMS), ...

* Yellow for Advanced Paramedics * Light Blue for

nurse Nursing is a health care profession that "integrates the art and science of caring and focuses on the protection, promotion, and optimization of health and human functioning; prevention of illness and injury; facilitation of healing; and alle ...

* Red for Medical Physician Doctor * Black for member of the

Clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

. Clergy are also granted the commissioned rank of Captain as displayed on epaulettes of uniform.

National organisation

The Order of Malta Ambulance Corps aims to have at least one unit based in every county in Ireland. The island of Ireland is divided into nine regions, each region administered by a regional director.

Regions and units

The island of Ireland is divided into nine regions, each with an appointed regionaldirector who reports directly to the Deputy National Director. The regions are: ;Northern Region :Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Tyrone and Derry ;North Western Region :Mayo, Sligo & Leitrim. (Currently have there are no units in Donegal) ;Western Region :Galway and Roscommon ;South Western Region :Clare, Limerick, Cork and Kerry ;South Eastern Region :Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, and Wexford ;Eastern Region : Dublin and Wicklow ;Midlands Region :Tipperary, Westmeath, Offaly, Longford, Laois and Kildare ;North Eastern Region :Louth and Meath (Currently there are no units in Cavan and Monaghan)

References

External links

Order of Malta Ambulance Corps
- official website
Official site of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta

Order of Malta British Association and English Priory

Maltese Association of the Order Of Malta
{{DEFAULTSORT:Order of Malta Ambulance Corps Sovereign Military Order of Malta Ambulance services in Ireland Health charities First aid organizations Charities based in the Republic of Ireland