Congratulations to Kate, who was on the same training course as me, for being featured in the Independant on Sunday about what she is doing on Christmas day, and what she will be eating. (Crisps, sandwiches and a bit of fruit for those that are interested). She mentions that her Christmas dinner will be warmed up in the microwave.
Sad bit though is that she won't see her young children until much later in the day.
We get little thanks for our job, so I hereby command you, my little cult of adoring readers, to find your local ambulance station and take them something nice to eat. Packets of crisps are nice, as are boxes of chocolates. Nibbly things are good too, as they can sit on a table and be snacked on should we ever get back to station. I'm sure lots of people like mince pies.
Do the same for the Police as well.
I wouldn't worry about the Fire service though – they have lovely big kitchens and nothing to do all day…
Go forth, and spread joy to those poor bastard ambulance/police people working on Christmas.
Disclaimer: I'm working Christmas day. But I always do, not having kids and being a Godless Heathen.
Well if i see a ambo/fru parked up standby near me, i'll offer them a cupper, food and the use of my loo. oh and a warm in front of the fire.
Does this count for us out in rural areas? Because I think that catapulting sausage rolls at the air ambulance or coastguard helicopter as they go past may be counterproductive.
…..or a pre-cooked and carved turkey, so we can at least 'taste' the old bird on xmas day ;-)Am also working, i wont much feel like opening pressies at 05:30 though, which means i'll have to wait over 12hours, oh i've onlt just thought of that!!
I'm on it already.
Better still, keep an eye out for the guys and girls working on the response cars and if you see them sitting out on standby, take them a cup of tea and a mince pie!(I only say that cos I'm working Christmas Day too! Hehe)
Steve
The World Through The Eyes Of An EMT
But what if my local ambulance place is miles away???I know! I'll call 999 – shortness of breath, pains in the chest… That should guarantee an RRU and an ambulance. Then I can feed both of them š
Hope Christmas day goes well for you Tom – hope someone brings you a cuppa and some food, and you only get called to people who actually need you. But also that they're all easily sorted and all appreciate that someone is there for them. If I lived in your area I would certainly bring in a big tin of cookies or something, as well as trying not to be ill!
My local ambulance station is IN my local fire station. I'll have to make sure no watersquirters get hold of any of it!!!!
The one I'll be local to on the Big Day is the HQ for the police, ambo and watersquirters. Trouble is, they have some very high fences and big snarling dogs to get past, so I may go for the 'get them to come to me' option described above….
this will have to be my technique as well, as I can't drive, the buses won't be running, blagging a lift will be more or less impossible due to people drinking, taxis charge extra at Christmas and the fare to the hospital is well in excess of 10 at normal times, and I'm stuck on benefits…Will the ambo peeps take “Tom Reynolds told me to do it” as an excuse, if I give them food, tea, and some goodies to take back with them?
Well Ive just gone against what I have just said. Just had 10 seconded firefighters descend on us for our Christmas Nibbles (dont ask). And apparently they are a corrupting influence on me. HERE'S TO CORRUPTION!!!!!! (the only kind of fun I get)
Our ambocrews have lots of standby points in police stations, but I command you:They have wheels and can find food whereas I will be stuck in a windowless department tending to the sick and needy old folk for 12hours who get dumped on us when the family get bored of them.
Beats being home with family!
Here our fire, police, and ambulance personal are all in one building.We are a very rural community, all our emergency services people work together for our community and are family to us. We work with them, we celebrate with them and we mourn with them.
The community works together throughout the year and send goodies and food for them.
Holidays are like a feast.
I'm a watersquirter, and I respond from home, via a cycle ride in the freezing cold, NO kitchen on the station, and no chance to sit there and eat stuff even if some kind soul DID bring us any!I feel all sad and rejected now… and I THOUGHT I was providing a vital service that the community was thankful for!
*BIG HUG for Sarah* I never thought I would feel sorry for a Watersquirter ;)…… I sure someone in your community feels a warm glow for you (or is that the fire…..)?
Off topic, but congrats on the accolade tom in the 'indy'. 9/10 and '….likely to be the next blogger to end up between hard covers…' And you say you cant write!! xx
x.
I can't find where the Brighton Ambulance Station is. Any ideas?I shall definitely try and visit the Arnold (Notts) one on Christmas day though!
What a lovely idea š
Eri x
I'm working Christmas Day day shift too! If anyone's passing Waterloo, bring me a turkey sandwich!
Sorry the big scary old man on the door wont let me in!
Many moons ago my friend and I (staff nurses at The London in those days) used to make cakes and leave them on the doorstep at Poplar! This was around the time the station moved from Woolmore St in Poplar to where it is now. There was no wire fence in those days and noone ever nicked the cake tins on the doorstep! Hope you all have a quiet Christmas (some hope) and nothing too dreadful happens. The granny dumping trick also happens over here in rural Oz …..people bring their elderly parents from miles away down to the coast for Christmas and then dump them in the local hospital. I remember this well from working at The London but it seems to be a universal problem.
Unfortunately it's not just in rural Oz they do it. :/ They do in the cities too. We've just got more than one hospital.Hope you have a wrinkle free Chrissie
http://www.nhsdiscounts.com/ have a comp for a fully catered, christmas dinner for 4 for anyone working christmas day (in the NHS)http://www.nhsdiscounts.com/
You do have to sign up for it though
tell me, how would i find out where my nearest ambo station is? I've read enough of Nee Naw to know that it wouldn't be the done thing to phone 999 to ask for directions!It's bound to be out of the way for me and i'm working the 23rd and 24th so no option to go in the day before with something that'll keep. but M&S might deliver.
Go to your ambo service website and you should be able to find it there, most services have each station listed.
Oooh. I think I'll pop round to the ambo station on Wellington Road this Christmas weekend…