Just had one of those days that makes you wonder what's the point.

I started the day by having to overtake an ambulance on it's way to cover while we were on our way to an RTA... I don't know who was mobilising, but they don't know their arse from their elbow. So much for sending the nearest crew...

Then for the rest of the day we were run ragged while other crews sat on standby at cover points. In all we did 10 jobs, not including the ones we were stood down from, while the other day crews did 3 or 4... I know, i've seen their running sheets.

The main reason we get stood down so much is Call Connect, the system introduced to help meet the arbittary government times. Basically when you call for an ambulance the first thing they ask is the address. That's so they can set us rolling asap. Then they get the job details and if, as it often is, the job's a stubbed toe, a broken finger nail or some similar crap, they try to persuade the caller that they don't need an ambulance. If they convince the caller, then usually we get turned around and sent back to where we came from. Great for morale that!

We had that about half a dozen times today. Not that we managed to get to a cover point at all. All our time between jobs was spent on the road.

Then there were our jobs today. 1 was semi-worthwhile, 5 taxi jobs, and 4 non-injury RTAs... "Ooh my neck hurts, do you think i can get some money?" "no, cos you're doing a really bad job of faking it and that's what my paperwork is going to say." - we can tell these things you know...

I started having to really bite my tongue when we had the guy who'd been ill for a week and couldn't walk. I obviously have healing hands as with no help he was able to walk out of the house, past his son's car and up the steps into the back of the ambulance. His son then followed behind the ambulance to hospital in his car...
This happens all too frequently.
TAXI!

Oh and add to that the crap night's sleep i had last night. Right now if you painted me blue i'd be a dead ringer for Mr Grumpy.

Tags: ambulance