Paramedic Calls Time After 40 Years
August 23, 2023in Community News
Retiring Ambulance Victoria (AV) Wodonga Team Manager Mike Fuery gathered with past and present colleagues this week to celebrate his remarkable 40-year career.
After beginning his career in several metro branches including Broadmeadows, Preston, Northcote and Eltham, Mr Fuery moved to Wangaratta and finally Wodonga.
Retiring Ambulance Victoria Wodonga Team Manager Mike Fuery (front) with past and present colleagues at the Wodonga Ambulance Branch.
The Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance (MICA) paramedic said he always had a passion for health care and joined AV in September 1983 after a moment of realisation while stuck in traffic.
“I was near St Vincent’s Hospital when I pulled up at red lights behind an ambulance and it dawned on me, ‘that’s what I want to do’,” he said.
“Working in health had interested me for some time and I had considered becoming a physiotherapist, but sitting behind the ambulance in traffic was my ‘Road to Damascus’ moment.”
Throughout his career, Mr Fuery said there have been countless memorable moments including the time he trained the brother of a baby he helped deliver.
“In Melbourne, I managed to assist during three out-of-hospital births. It was some years later that I asked a student I was training at Wodonga how he became interested in the job, and he told me when he was a kid his mum had a baby at home,” he said.
“He described the year, the address and the scene that I remembered in great detail. It was a nice little touchstone and a bit of serendipity.”
Mike Fuery in his Ambulance Victoria uniform in 1983 (left) and as a Mobile Intensive Care Ambulance (MICA) paramedic in 1992 (right).
While the decision to retire was not an easy one to make, Mr Fuery said he was looking forward to pursuing other interests.
“Life is very short and precious; I have other things I’d like to achieve outside work, such as educating others on preventative health strategies and changing how people think of their health,” he said.
“I will miss my team immensely as well as working closely with other emergency services, and the camaraderie that comes with that.”
Mr Fuery said the best advice he had for those considering joining the profession was to be aware of the demands of shift work and to prioritise their own health from day one.
“If you look after yourself, you’re in a better position to look after everyone else,” he said.