NHS Ambulance service

[Monkey321]

Hi, I'm from NZ so have no experience or knowledge of the health system over there in the UK. However, I've been watching a reality series based on the ambulance service and real life call outs and really enjoy the show. (The 1 at the moment was filmed during the pandemic so a few years ago). I just wanted to say that based on this series that the paramedics are really professional, really good with the patients and really seem to "care" for their patients. Watching it has opened up my (my family's) eyes to just how huge the UK is. Whenever I see an ambulance now here in NZ rushing past me, I certainly have a new respect for them.

[PMRpro Ambassador]

Which one are you watching? There are several and most of them continued filming through the pandemic using body-worn cameras - when it started they had a professional cameraperson travelling with them. My daughter is a paramedic and worked on the ambos for about 10 years but now works in the ED. Still prefers being on the road - she did a shift last night on her days off to keep her registration, She works in rural Yorkshire - can take 40 mins to get to a patient, even on blue lights.

[Monkey321 in reply to PMRpro]

I think it's called Ambulance paramedics. It follows filming across 16 different ambulance stations 24/7 shifts. The paramedics wear Body cameras. The majority of the patients they go out too are the elderly. Quite a good programme.

[DorsetLady PMRGCAuk volunteer]

Actually UK is slightly smaller than NZ in terms of square kilometres… but many more people 66m as compared to around 4-5m.

So roads much more crowded in rural areas as well as urban… something my grandsons had to learn when they came across here to work… they were used to driving many kilometres on open empty roads where in many places you can see forever [seemingly!].

We have a few of those, but not as many as you… many country roads here are narrow, bendy and tree/hedge lined….something I continually had to remind 18 year old when he first came across.. and was driving my car for 6 weeks whilst I recovered from knee replacement surgery 😳… I had been out driving with him in NZ before he passed his test earlier that year.. slightly different!

[Monkey321 in reply to DorsetLady]

Yes, the streets seem narrow there, heaps of huge roundabouts too. The houses are different too like the ones in tv eg Coronation Street. It's interesting to hear all the different accents too.

[Monkey321 in reply to DorsetLady]

NZ especially the South Island can be huge stretches of roads with wide open kilometers. Cities like Wellington and Christcurch are of busy, traffic galore and narrow roads.

[DorsetLady PMRGCAuk volunteer in reply to Monkey321]

Yes I know, been to both cities - my daughter lives on Canterbury Plains, eldest grandson attended Victoria uni and then worked in Wellington for a few years.

Last time I visited Auckland-met a couple of members of this forum…

Hope to return to see daughter later this year..,

[Monkey321 in reply to DorsetLady]

Yes, the Canterbury Plains stretch on and on, hot and humid in Summer, freezing in Winter. I lived in Wellington for 4 years and it's traffic chaos especially in peak hour. We were there yesterday and traffic okay thankfully. I have a family member studying at Vic Uni at the moment.