Thank A Paramedic Day

Today marks Victoria’s first Thank a Paramedic Day – an opportunity for the community to show its appreciation for paramedics and the work they do.

Acting Ambulance Victoria CEO Tony Walker said Thank a Paramedic Day gave the public an opportunity to leave messages and express their thanks via social media, particularly Facebook.

“Paramedics treat and transport people every day, usually in times of great need,” Mr Walker said.

“While paramedics are a humble bunch and don’t seek accolades, we frequently hear from our patients, their families and friends about the amazing care paramedics have provided.

“While it is not sought or expected, thank you letters and messages from patients can really make a difference to what can be a challenging job.

“Some days are wonderful but the nature of paramedic work means that, despite all their training and efforts, sometimes paramedics can’t help and that’s tough.

“Paramedics often move on to the next job and never hear about the outcome until people contact us out of the blue to say, ‘You have made a difference and changed our lives forever.’

“That’s incredibly powerful and uplifting to hear and it can mean the world to paramedics to know that their efforts are appreciated.”

Thank a Paramedic Day has been commemorated in NSW for a number for a number of years and is set to become an annual event in Victoria, too.

Members of the community are invited to provide messages of appreciation or comment on their own positive experiences and interactions with paramedics on Ambulance Victoria’s Facebook page, via Twitter (@ambulance_vic), or on Instagram (@ambulance_victoria) using the hash tag #ThanksAmbos. Wherever possible, messages will be followed through and passed on to paramedics.

Victorians can participate in ‘Thank a Paramedic Day’ by sharing stories, photos and messages on Facebook.

Several patients who have recently contacted Ambulance Victoria to say thanks were today reunited with paramedics who helped them in their time of need, including:

• Colleen Constante gave birth to son Lucas at 25 weeks at home in March, 2014. Colleen immediately called Triple Zero and paramedics arrived in 10 minutes. While loading into the ambulance the baby stopped breathing and CPR was performed. Little Lucas is now 17 months old and thriving.

• Marcus Necovska was born in the back of an ambulance on the Tullamarine Freeway after his mother, Karol, unexpectedly went into labour. On Marcus’ recent ninth birthday, Karol contacted Ambulance Victoria to say thanks and see if she could find the paramedics that helped deliver Marcus because he had been asking for years. Karol did not know the paramedics’ names but, curiously, one of the paramedics who delivered Marcus is named Marc.

• Opera singer Stacey Alleaume, her husband, Fabian Alonso, and daughter, Jessica, were injured in a freeway car collision. The trio were helped by paramedics including an off-duty paramedic who came across the accident just hours after attending another collision on the same stretch of road that day.  Stacey contacted Ambulance Victoria to say thanks and let paramedics know that she was able to resume her career as an opera singer. She is about to make her professional debut at the Sydney Opera House performing the role of Leïla in The Pearlfishers.