In 2007 I started a new career working for an NHS Ambulance Trust. I began working in the control room, answering emergency calls and dispatching ambulances. I then decided I wanted to work “on the road” and in 2008 began my new role as a Student Paramedic. I qualified as a Paramedic in 2011 and (mostly) enjoyed a fulfilling and rewarding career as a frontline Paramedic.

I resigned my post in March 2019 due to a variety of contributing factors which I will share in a future blog post. I am now enjoying life as a freelance Paramedic working mainly on events, film sets and construction sites.

The main question I, and I’m certain many others working in this field get asked is “What’s the worst thing you’ve seen?”

There is a pensive, voyeuristic fascination with learning the details of other peoples’ lives at their worst or dying moments. In my opinion, this comes from wanting the ‘behind the scenes’ knowledge and to visually imagine the horrors of the way we can sometimes leave this world and the realisation that it can happen to anyone. It gives you a wake up call to the fragility of human life and a renewed sense of gratitude for the one you’re living.

In this blog I will take it right back to the start, I will reflect upon my journey and the lives and deaths of the people I’ve encountered along the way. I hope to give insight into the role and the difficult situations ambulance staff can regularly face and be exposed to. The initial reason for wanting to start this blog was therapy for myself, to re-explore the jobs that have stayed with me, the images my mind has held onto and to create an outlet for the feelings that I perhaps should have experienced and processed at the time. I hope you enjoy reading it and I hope you will take away something valuable from it.

---

Follow My Blog

Get new content delivered directly to your inbox.