New interim CEO announced for rapid reponse charity

CRITICAL, one of Ireland’s leading emergency medical response charities, has announced the appointment of Donal McCarthy as interim CEO.

McCarthy, who joined the CRITICAL board in 2021, takes over from Micheál Sheridan who is moving to a new role in the healthcare sector.

He has served as CEO in a number of organisations and is also an experienced business growth consultant, with outgoing CEO Micheal Sheridan saying he was delighted that Mr McCarthy will be joining CRITICAL at a very exciting time for the charity.

CRITICAL was first established in 2009 as Irish Community Rapid Response and in 2019 it successfully launched Ireland’s first and only charity Air Ambulance, which is now fully funded and provided by the state.

Today, it has a growing network of volunteer responders operating in 20 counties in cities, towns, and villages, including consultants in emergency medicine who have been provided with emergency vehicles and equipment to care for sick or injured patients.

They are tasked by the National Ambulance Service (NAS) to road traffic collisions, cardiac arrests, farming accidents, and other major trauma within 30km of where they live.

CRITICAL board of directors chair Colm Eustace said: “I would like to thank Micheál Sheridan for his dedication to the charity over the last three years and wish him the very best of luck in his career.

“Under Micheál’s guidance, CRITICAL charity has gone from strength to strength.

“At the start of this year, we had teams in three counties, now we’re active in 20 counties with more than 80 people volunteering to respond to life threatening emergencies and illnesses,” Mr Eustace said..

“These responders are supported by a strong team to provide a vital service. Their equipment is entirely funded by donations and fundraisers carried out by members of the public.

“We are delighted that board member Donal McCarthy has agreed to become interim CEO. His job will be to continue Micheál’s work to expand the charity into even more locations and to support the search for a new permanent CEO.”