Paramedics and best friends Rosalind Wade (left) and Angela Metcalfe. Photo / St John
Paramedics and best friends Rosalind Wade (left) and Angela Metcalfe. Photo / St John
The paramedic who attempted to buy food for a family she had just helped - only to have the local dairy owner shout the goods himself - says she was just showing compassion to a family who needed it.
Rosalind Wade and fellow paramedic Angela Metcalfe were called to a medical emergency in Otara, South Auckland, just before 6pm on Tuesday.
There, they treated a patient with a medical condition that had left their blood sugar levels very low at that point.
The two St John staffers, who are also best friends, worked to boost the patient's blood sugar levels. However, there was no appropriate food in the house to help maintain those levels - which could have easily resulted in the patient being rushed to hospital.
"Angela and I devised a plan to go out and buy [them] some food. Angela stayed and treated the patient, while I went to the dairy up the road to get some basic food supplies.
The owner, who only wanted to be known as "Batman" when contacted, spotted Wade and made up his mind before she got to the counter that he would donate the goods.
"I thought it was for her dinner, which I was going to shout her. But when she told me what it was for, it was 100 per cent going to happen anyway,'' he told the Herald.
"She was kind of shocked. I just go: 'It's just what we do. Don't worry about it'.''
"Batman" - who has lived in the area for more than 30 years - has Batman memorabilia around his shop and is known for dressing up as the comic superhero to visit children in hospital.
He also donates to various causes or events in the Otara and wider South Auckland community.
He shared about the experience with the paramedic on his popular Random Acts of Batman Facebook page and posted a photo of the St John ambulance parked next to his Batmobile with the number plate: DARKNT.
The owner of Velvet Dairy, in Otara, is known to locals as Batman. Photo / Velvet Dairy
Wade called his gesture incredibly generous.
"We were happy to pay for the groceries ourselves, but we are so grateful for his kind gesture,'' she said.
The family were said to have been humbled and grateful by the gesture also.
"We were just happy to be able to help them and prevent [the patient] from being admitted to hospital,'' Wade said.
Asked whether they had done similar things for patients in the past, Metcalfe said they always did their best to help patients - even beyond medical treatment.
They were often called to people who were deprived or needed additional support, so they made sure to offer help where and when they could, Metcalfe said.
"This includes rocking a baby to sleep, locking someone's house up or switching off a heater before we transport them to hospital - or creating a plan or pathway to lead patients to a better outcome so they can live a healthier and better life.''
