How Nearform and the National Ambulance Service redesigned Ireland's cardiac response
How Nearform and the National Ambulance Service replaced text-message alerts with an app that helps Ireland's volunteer responders reach cardiac emergencies faster.
Every year in Ireland, thousands of people suffer life-threatening conditions in their homes and communities. More than 4,500 trained Community First Responders stand ready to reach them before an ambulance can, and for over 10 years, those volunteers were alerted by text message. Nearform partnered with the National Ambulance Service of Ireland to change that, replacing an ageing SMS system with a purpose-built app and platform that redesigned how the whole service operates.
When seconds matter, information is everything
Cardiac arrest is a community problem before it becomes an ambulance problem. The Community First Responder network exists because a nearby trained volunteer can reach someone faster than any emergency vehicle, but only if they're alerted quickly and given the right information to act on.
For over a decade, that alert arrived as a text message with no map, no incident details, and no way for a volunteer to know whether anyone else was already on their way. Volunteers arrived at the scene without context and without a shared picture of what was happening around them. The program itself had no way to understand its own performance. There was limited logging, limited data, and limited visibility into how the network was actually functioning across Ireland's 360 schemes.
The National Ambulance Service knew that more was now possible. That’s where Nearform came in.
Built in partnership, designed around the people who use it
Nearform's prior work with the HSE on the Covid Tracker Ireland app and the National Healthcare App had built the kind of trust that a project of this sensitivity demands. The work called for more than building something new. With hundreds of volunteers depending on the existing alerting system every day, the team had to work carefully within live infrastructure, making meaningful improvements without ever putting the service at risk.
The approach was genuinely collaborative from the beginning. Small, senior teams working in close partnership with the people who know the service best is how something this critical gets built well. CFR volunteers shaped the design directly, contributing their real-world experience of what a responder actually needs to see in the moments after an alert arrives: moving fast, under pressure, with no time to fumble between apps or piece together information from multiple sources.
“It wasn't about them just building a product for us. It was about them and us working together to build a product that ultimately is going to save lives.”
Ger O'Dea
Community Engagement Manager, National Ambulance Service of Ireland
From alert to action, a better way to respond
The NAS CFR app delivers instant notifications with full incident detail, shows volunteers whether others are already responding, and enables single-tap availability management and roaming across group boundaries. Every action taken in the field is logged, giving the National Ambulance Service a clear picture of how its volunteer network is performing across the country and the data it needs to keep improving.
That visibility matters as much as the technology itself. Without the ability to measure how the network is performing, even the best tools can only go so far. For the first time, the National Ambulance Service has the data it needs to understand what's working, spot gaps, and keep improving the service for the volunteers and the communities they serve.
Throughout delivery, AI was used as a genuine working tool rather than a headline feature. It contributed to architecture decisions, supported code review, and helped stress-test the system, embedded within a specification-driven, small senior-team approach that kept quality and governance intact from start to finish.
“First time using the app, I'll use the word refreshing. The mapping is extremely beneficial. It brings you straight across and lets you concentrate on what's important.”
Glen Barton
Community First Responder, Carrigaline CFR Scheme, Cork
The impact
2,900 incidents responded to
Since launch, Ireland's Community First Responders have used the app to respond to over 2,900 incidents across the country.
Instant notifications with full incident detail
Volunteers now receive everything they need the moment an alert arrives, replacing the SMS alerts that gave them basic information and nothing more.
Volunteers can see who is responding
Before they reach the scene, volunteers can see which other responders are already on their way and who will be there to assist when they arrive.
Better program performance visibility
For the first time, the National Ambulance Service has the data to understand how its volunteer network is performing and where it can keep improving.
Hundreds of volunteers use the app every day
Other state emergency services now also use the platform to coordinate community first response alongside ambulance crews.
Ireland's cardiac arrest survival rate sits above 9%
While most European neighbours sit above 10%, that gap is a solvable one and this platform is part of closing it.
It takes a system to save a life. The technology, the volunteers, and the partnership between Nearform and the National Ambulance Service all played their part.
The NAS CFR App is what you get when everyone involved is pulling in the same direction around something that truly matters.
Our capabilities
Strategy
Service redesign and discovery
Safety-critical delivery planning
Partnership with HSE and NAS stakeholders
Design
User research with volunteer responders
Interface design for high-stress, in-field use
Engineering
Native mobile app development
Push notification and alerting infrastructure
Real-time availability and routing
Action logging and program analytics
Integration with existing live systems
AI-assisted delivery
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