51±ľÉ« hosted first responders from around Ireland for a recent award ceremony remembering Dara Fitzpatrick.
The Capt. Dara Fitzpatrick award marks Dara’s powerful legacy as an Irish Coast Guard Search and Rescue pilot by celebrating inspirational women who work in the Irish pre-hospital community and emergency services.
The award is an initiative of the Irish Paramedicine Education and Research Network (IPERN), an inter-professional, volunteer team of paramedics, nurses, doctors, allied health professionals and scientists dedicated to supporting best practice for out-of-hospital care nationally through engagement, education and collaboration.
IPERN is chaired by Dr Niamh Cummins, an Associate Professor in Public Health in the School of Medicine at UL who hosted the award ceremony with her colleague Gráinne O’Shea, an Advanced Paramedic who leads the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) group at IPERN.
Niamh and Gráinne collaborated closely with the Fitzpatrick family in developing the award which celebrates Dara’s values of compassion, kindness, strength, bravery, leadership, teamwork and professionalism.
The five finalists for the 2024 award were chosen from a total of 17 impressive nominees by a review panel using a rigorous selection process. The 2024 finalists were introduced by Dr Cummins who described them as “shining examples of women at the height of their professions, who go above and beyond in serving their communities”.
The award was presented to Private Nicole Carroll of the Irish Defence Forces at the ceremony by Dara’s sister Emer Fitzpatrick. Private Carroll is a combat medical technician in the Defence Forces who lives and works in the Curragh Camp, Co Kildare where she cares for 1,200 soldiers.
The other finalists were Caitriona Edgar, an Advanced Paramedic with the National Ambulance Service; Garda Emma Henebery, a uniformed specialist firearms officer with the Armed Support Unit; Olivia Byrne, a nurse and volunteer lifeboat member with Galway RNLI and Dr Sinead Campbell-Gray, an Emergency Medicine Consultant who tirelessly campaigned in her free time to realise the dream of having an Air Ambulance in Northern Ireland so that its rural population has accessibility to hospital services.
In announcing the winner Dr Cummins highlighted how difficult a decision it had been for the Award Review Panel when all of the finalists were so deserving of the honour.
A Special Recognition Award was also presented on the day to the family of CaitrĂona Lucas. CaitrĂona was an Irish Coast Guard volunteer who tragically lost her life in 2016 while assisting in a search and rescue operation off the coast of Co Clare. The presentation was made by Dara’s father John Fitzpatrick to CaitrĂona’s husband Bernard Lucas. CaitrĂona was described as being “an immense volunteer, who created enormous opportunities that enriched her community”.
The opening address for the 2024 Award Ceremony was delivered by Professor Colum Dunne, Head of the School of Medicine at UL. Professor Dunne shared his personal experiences of growing up with a firefighter father in Cork and highlighted the vital work of First Responders and the important role that women play in the emergency services.
This warm introduction was followed by a fireside chat with Frances Griffin, the inaugural winner of the Captain Dara Fitzpatrick Award in 2023. Frances is a paramedic with the National Ambulance Service who was one of the first responders on scene at the Creeslough explosion with the National Ambulance Service.
In conversation with Gráinne, she shared her memories of that difficult day and described with both humility and humour how she copes with the challenges of life on the road as a paramedic.