Dialogue: The quiet heroes who keep us safe

By ELISABETH EASTHER

For the past 10 weeks I have risen at 6 am or earlier and worked until I see double. I have lost track of time, friends and household chores. I have never kept such long hours before and, much as I have enjoyed it, I'm glad it is for only one more week.

Despite what this work has deprived me of, it has given me a window into a world I would never have seen otherwise. I chase ambulances for television. I sit up in the front, in an edit suite at least, with an editor and together we see through the lens of a camera, watching heroes at work.

We rewind and fast forward as ambulance officers - with nothing more than a code from the pager and a location - go through their paces, lights and sirens going off, with just a few hints as to what they will find. Surprise is a big part of ambulance work, a common comment on the way to jobs being, "We won't really know till we get there."

From mad people to bad people, from car wrecks that might explode to the scenes of violent crime, St John Ambulance crews work tirelessly with police and other emergency services. Their presence makes us safer.

In between the jobs that receive media attention, they're out in the community helping the elderly, the frightened and the lonely. Sometimes even the bored.

Social work is a huge part of business, frequent callers getting the same kind, prompt treatment as those in life-and-death emergencies.

Ambulance staff are at the bottom of the cliff - the volunteers at the weekend sports fixtures, the clean-up crews who know that public holidays are anything but a holiday for some. They also know just how stupid people can be.

There have been times when our crews have been called to accidents I feel could have been avoided. Still, the officers don't make similar moral judgments.

The drunk driver who doesn't think he needs treatment, abusive patients who are angry that they are hurt or unwell. The elderly person who cannot breath and just wanted a can of beans opened anyway. They all receive the same impeccable service and care.

If I ever saw any of my officers - I've never actually met them but I feel I know them well - I would be unable to stop myself from rushing up and furiously shaking their hands. Thank you, I would like to say, you're exceptional people.

They all seem to agree, too, that for all the drama and excitement involved in providing first aid, they have mostly chosen the profession because they are proud to make a real difference.

As for the rash of frightening incidents involving ambulance personnel lately, hospital staff have also spoken out about violence in the frontline. And, from what I have seen going on in the backs of ambulances and hospital emergency departments, I simply don't know how they manage. They have won my wholehearted respect.

It's bedlam sometimes, surprise after messy surprise, and everyone just keeps on stitching people up, calming things down and getting on with the job. I've learned that we are all just meat inside and if I used to be squeamish, I'm not any more.

Mostly the ambulance crews are pragmatic about the risks. They explain how safe assembly points work and how they have strategies for dealing with volatile situations.

It is interesting to see how often the police are present at ambulance callouts, but that's for many reasons, not least because crime scenes often involve injuries.

I heard one officer talk about the threats they face. Picking her words carefully, she told us that violent people are not directing it at them as individuals. "They're scared, they're hurting, they're irrational, they're drunk. When we tell them we are just there to help, they usually let us get on with the job."

Being a woman, she said, can help. Most people shed aggression when dealing with a female officer.

Sadly, however, there are exceptions to every rule.