Hospitals are under constant threat from internal and external hazards. A fire can cause substantial structural damage that necessitates evacuations which can compromise care. The objective of this study is to assess the lived experiences of the Wexford General Hospital Staff who responded to the fire to learn how to improve an Irish Hospital Fire Protection System.

This Hermeneutic Phenomenological research study was conducted through focus group discussions and structured interviews. Hospital staff who volunteered to participate in the study must have worked on the day or night shift of the incident.

Discussion contents review yielded codes and themes, drawn into positive and negative lived experiences. Two main themes emerged: Positive Themes = Luck, Leadership, Level-headed, Liaison, Look-back and Learn (L5); Problem Themes = Alarms, Begrudge, Communication, Directive, Emergency Plan, Flow (ABCDEF).

The Hermeneutic Phenomenology methodology utilized in this study specifically learning from the lived experiences of those who were on duty during the WGH fire can improve the fire protection system at hospitals based on the knowledge gained encompassed in the L5 and ABCDEF findings.