Since my last column in November, I had the pleasure of attending the Priory of St John Ambulance to collect my Service Medal to the Order of St John Ambulance, having given 15 years of service volunteering to the organisation. If it were not for St John Ambulance, I would not have had the experience, confidence, or ability to apply to become a paramedic. Having the privilege to attend the priory has been the highlight of my St John Career.
The nights are now drawing in; it is dark when I leave for work and on the way home—something I am sure all readers will relate to! The daylight hours are being spent in the classroom as my clinical induction with the London Ambulance Services started in November. It has been an intense time of learning curves, refreshing old skills, taking in new skills and ‘all things London’. On the course was a mix of newly qualified paramedics (NQPs) and some band 6 paramedics transferring into London from other trusts. This made for a variety of skills and experiences, which made the course interesting and also paved the way towards forging friendships with others in a similar situation to myself.
I am amazed at the different pathways and policies that are available to me as an NQP. It is hard not to compare the new way of working to what I was used to as a student. I regularly find myself thinking that this way of doing something is different or strange. Being back in a classroom has been hard work, spending 8 hours focusing on Powerpoint presentations, taking in what has been said and trying to apply it to when I arrive it at the operational placement centre (OPC). I am looking forward to using some of the new knowledge taught. The electronic patient report form (EPRF) and having that linked to the summary care record is something that I am not used to. I muse that it must be helpful to be able to access this information, especially when a patient may not be able to remember things. After 4 weeks in the classroom, being assessed on advanced life support (ALS), intraosseous access (EZ-IO) and a handful of other skills, I completed my clinical induction. At the same time, I have spent this time being ‘Londonised’.
A northern girl, born and raised in and around Manchester, moving to London has been an eye opener! Traffic, traffic is everywhere! I still cannot comprehend how a 15-mile journey from home can take more than an hour. On another note—the tube. How does one navigate the underground? I recently found myself stood in Waterloo Station overwhelmed and practically lost in the midst of the train strikes, trying to navigate my way from southwest London to east London for induction. As a tourist, I enjoyed popping in and out of the tube at different stations for different landmarks and activities. But using the tube as a method of commuting to work is a different ball game. It is so busy, people on and off, all jostling for space, not talking to each other or making eye contact, tapping away on phones or laptops, earphones in and just wanting to get on with their day.
Rolling rapidly into December, I am now onto the Certificate in Emergency Response Ambulance Driving (CERAD) Level 3 emergency driving. Up to now, the first few days have been content-heavy and intense—and that's before we get to the parts of driving at speed and using exemptions and lights. From the induction course, a few of us are continuing onto driving so there are a few familiar faces, along with some of our Australian colleagues who are now able to complete the course. My next update will be my first written in 2024, by which time I will have been operational for a few weeks!