“But I pay your wages!”

If I got 10p for every time I heard that during my ambulance career I’d be a very, very rich man.

It’s a common misbelief that, because someone pays taxes which, actual do partly fund the NHS, that said taxpayer has the right to demand certain things from an ambulance crew. I suggest you don’t think that way, or use the title statement, or you may find you the crew do their job exactly as they were trained to, ie. No extra mile for you like most other patients get.

Every crew member has their own response – “you get what you pay for”, “ooh, let’s talk payrises…” or “ask the nurses at A&E about a refund”. There are many responses, but all mask the same emotions – hurt, anger, the feeling of being patronised and undervalued. When the crew member responds, they’ll usually do it with a smile, but inside they’re thinking “here we go again”. Often it’s from a patient, or their relative/friend who has no medical training and thinks they are not getting their way.

Please be considerate. The NHS doesn’t take people off the street, hand them some ambulance keys and send them to sick people. These guys are well trained and do actually know what they are doing. They do also have feelings and emotions, and after a long shift, or at any time actually, they shouldn’t have to tolerate inexperienced members of the public telling them how to do their jobs.

I guess the purpose of this post is simply to say trust your Ambulance crews, be patient with them. Its not an easy job, but it’s one they’ve chosen to do, to help people like you.

And, if you still don’t think they do enough, you can always pay for private healthcare. In some countries you have no option….