All language subtitles for Ambulance S12E01_Subtitles02.ENG

This program me contains scenes
which some viewers may find upsetting

Ambulance Service, is the patient
breathing?

Across the UK, more than 14 million
999 calls

are made for an ambulance a year,

with the North West Ambulance
Service receiving

a new cry for help every 20 seconds.

As the pressure builds...

There's absolutely no reason to talk
to me like that.

I'm trying to help you here.

...the control room has to decide
who will receive an ambulance...

17-year-old male, cardiac arrest.

...and who must wait.

We do have delays at the moment of
up to eight hours and 45 minutes.

On the ground, ambulance crews race
to save lives...

...and offer the best help they can.

Oh, it's nice of you to come.
You're ever so nice to talk to.

Tell you what, Norman, you're made
of strong stuff.

Black pudding.

I love a bit of black pudding.

From the picket line...

Everyone's going on strike because
no-one can afford to live.

...to the front line...

Are you going to be violent towards
our crew?

...this is the story of some
of the darkest days

in the history of our NHS.

He was quite happy to die
on the streets of Manchester.

It's going to probably get a little
bit worse...

Are you OK? Yeah.

...before it gets better.

3276?

Unexploded bomb.

To my hometown. Beats Darwen.

Nothing beats Darwen.

3276, unexploded bomb.

Shoe box sized box with wires
coming out.

Several white sticks sticking out

and blue and red wires.

Control, Sajid speaking.
How can I help?

Leading the team in control
today is duty manager Saj.

With limited information about
the suspect package

coming from the scene,

they must work quickly to
co-ordinate

the large scale response.

Yeah. just want to make sure no-one
goes to the site.

Golf, Mike, all resources on the
open channel,

the unexploded bomb incident in
Astley Bridge.

At this stage, we have been informed
have got an RV point

of Bar Lane in Bolton,

Ancl that is back from the incident.

It's the smallest road in the world.

You're not going to get
everyone down there.

Right. OK. Janet, if you can...
Can you see...?

It's next to the station.
Right.

So that's where the bomb is,

that's where the RV point is.

Any crews coming up and on
Blackburn Road,

just have a look out for them.

What I'd probably do is put a shout
out to all your crews and just say,

"Can we avoid Blackburn Road?
Please can we avoid for the moment?"

If it is where it is... Yeah. It is
going to get, probably, closed.

Astley Bridge, yeah. I'll do a
shout-out. Nice one.

Information for all crews.

Please can you avoid Blackburn Road,
Astley Bridge, Bolton?

The suspect package had been found
on a residential street in close

proximity to a primary school
and nursery.

While emergency services work
together

to throw a 100m cordon around
the suspect package,

the bomb squad deploy a robot
to safely examine it.

Adam's just arrived on the scene,
Saj.

Are they still at the RV point?
Yeah. Right, OK. Nice one.

Do you want anything else on this at
the moment?

That's it all covered now.

Channel's open,
everyone's been notified.

It's just a waiting game now.

We generally deal with a couple
of false alarms a week.

You can't take it lightly.

It may turn out to be very serious,

and you don't want to be behind
the curve.

You want to be in front
of it at all times.

There is a lot of responsibility
to keep the people

of Greater Manchester safe.

It's a densely populated area.

It's got a vibrant nightlife,
rail, road networks.

We sit on a lot of risk.

That's not lost on us.

Yes. So, basically, the EOD, they're
going to do a controlled explosion. OK.

But we're not required.

Done, dusted.
Yeah, clone and dusted.

GMP and Fire and Rescue
are going to be there.

They don't need our assistance.
Brilliant.

So we're all coming clear off
the job and the channel's closed.

Right, OK. Brilliant. Nice one.

The Arena did have a ripple effect.
You could...

You know, it's one of those moments
where you always

thought it'd never happen.

Ancl when it did happen,
it was a shock.

We're living with it to this clay.

The scarring that it's left.

You know, it touched a lot of people
that I work with.

Ancl we know there's an emotional
price to pay for that.

We've learnt a lot.

We're a very different service
after the Arena.

For the better.

Right, OK. That's clone.

Alpha 169, thank you.

I've just popped a Cat 2
through to you in Rochdale.

212, priority. Go ahead.

With the incident resolved,
dispatchers Andy and Chloe

turn their attention to the 57
incidents across Greater Manchester

currently waiting for an ambulance.

All right.

Let's get cracking.

Bearing in mind you've got
loads of crews,

this stack's getting bigger.

It's ridiculous, innit? But all
my crews are on jobs. I know.

There's already waits in hand
over at Oldham.

It's not looking good.

It's only going to get worse.

Of the ten hospitals covering
Greater Manchester,

half are experiencing delays of over
15 minutes to hand over patients.

RoyalOldham Hospital
has been hardest hit, with a total

of nine ambulances held at hospital
this morning,

causing waits of up to two hours.

With fewer ambulances able
to respond,

the service begins to feel
the impact of the hospital delays,

with Category 3 patients being
made to wait up to

three hours longer than the target
response time.

Tell me exactly what happened.

So has her condition worsened?

What I can do is re-triage her, OK?

just so we can get her some
appropriate help,

and see if we can get there
quicker, OK?

She's so breathless that speaking
more than a few words is impossible?

But she's struggling?

We have got that ambulance arranged.

We have updated that information
for you and it will be the next

available ambulance for you when
we do have one available, OK?

169, thank you.

I've just passed you a Cat 2.

You're going to the bus station

for a 90-year-old female that's
conscious and breathing,

but apparently she has been blown
over by the wind.

So if you just give us an update
from scene.

Many thanks for that.

Yeah, no worries. Will do.
Cheers, Andy.

Alpha 169, Adam and Matt,

are the closest available resource
to the upgraded Category 2 call.

I didn't realise
it was that windy today. I know.

But then some of the elderly
patients are so, so frail,

aren't they, and there's nothing
to them.

There's going to be more risks of
kind of fractures if she's fallen,

and hip fractures.

Oh, it is windy.

Really windy.

Hello!

How long have you been here, Joyce?

Oh, bless you. Bless you.

I'm sorry about your wait, Joyce.
What's happened, Joyce?

How have we ended up on the floor?

Just blew you?

Right, OK.

Is it hurting there?

So you're her sister, are you?
Yeah. You are, yeah?

What we're going to try and do
is just straighten this leg out

a little bit. JOYCE: Yeah.

If it's too painful, let me know.

Yeah. I'm holding your hand in case
you want a squeeze.

Yeah. OK.

Right. Shall I get Entonox?

Have you ever had gas and air
before, Joyce?

You have?

Were you all right off it?

Hold on to that, Joyce.

That's it. Nice deep breaths.

Might make you feel a little
bit dizzy, all right,

and we'll hopefully get this pain
under control

and get you onto the back of our
vehicle. All right?

Think she's a bit spaced out.

Joyce, me and Adam are going to
support you under each arm,

and then we're going to have a big
push up on this leg, with our help,

onto our stretcher, get you in the
ambulance, get you a bit warmer, OK?

One, two, three.

Big push up. Big push up.

Well clone. Well clone.
Get that stretcher right here.

Well done. All right.
Keep breathing that gas in, Joyce.

There we go. Well clone.
Well done. Well done.

We won't have to do any
more moving now, Joyce.

Oh, it's warm in here.

Do you have any medical problems?

You're on a lot of tablets? Are you
rattling? Oh, dear.

Do you? You don't know what they're
for, though?

So, Joyce, do you remember exactly
what's happened?

Yeah. The wind blew me over.

Let's have a look,
first of all, at this leg here.

SHE GROANS

So, Joyce, what we think
has potentially happened,

there's a possibility
you might have fractured your hip.

If you don't mind me asking,
Joyce, how old are you?

92. 92?

Oh, I think you're doing...
I think you're doing very well.

Really well. Really well, yeah.

Alpha 169. 169, go ahead.

Yeah. So we've got a 92-year-old
female here.

This lady's got a frailty
scale of five.

She's normally quite independent.

We were just considering frailty
pathway, doing a pre-alert

into Oldham with a neck of femur to
her left side.

I don't know what your thoughts
are on that.

That's fine by me.
Cheers for that. I'll tell Oldham.

Busy, isn't it?

I've got eight crews stuck in
Royal Oldham.

Not going to see them soon.

No. 108 minutes longest wait for
handover so far. I know.

No, another busy one.

So have you always been close
sisters? Very?

You've always been very close?

Yeah. Ten of us, we were.

How many? Ten children. Wow.
Eight girls, two lads.

Wow. We had no television in them
clays.

No, no, there wasn't.

I wasn't going to say anything!
THEY LAUGH

Brilliant.

There's just three of us left now.

Us two, and the other one's in
a home.

You're the Three Musketeers,
are you?

Yeah. Three Musketeers.
Yes. Yeah.

One, two, three, four, five.

Are we there? We are, yeah.

It looks like they're holding.

just double check, with it
being a frail and injured pathway.

Yeah. It looks... I'm struggling to
find

somewhere to park, to be honest.
Right. Oh, heck.

Looks like there's probably
seven or eight.

Hiya. Do you know if we're all right
to come in?

We need standby for the frail
and injured patient pathway.

Oh, thank you.

How many grandchildren have you
got, Joyce? 13 of them. 13!

13 great-grandchildren,
eight grandchildren.

We've got them three weddings coming
up. Three coming up?

Better get better.

So we can come in. because we've gone down
the frail ancl injured patient pathway,

they're going to trauma assess her.

That is absolutely fine.
We'll go there.

just starting to rain.

Oh, better get in.

Better get in before it does.

Are you following...? Following us?

You take your time, OK?

We don't want to run off without
you. Don't you start running.

All right?

Come on, trouble.

MOBILE PHONE PLAYS: Rain
by A] Tracey and Aitch

# ..soon as I land,
bill a paper plane

# Go running on down the street... #

Alpha 196, Kyle and Hannah, are just
about to come back on duty

after their break.

AMBULANCE SYSTEM BEEPS
Oh, my giddy aunt!

SHE GASPS

BEEPING CONTINUES

Stop!

What the...?!

Unexploded bomb?!

Open channel 135.

There's an unexploded bomb.

Another one.

Genuinely is another one coming in.
Where's this?

Oldham. Oldham?!

Yeah, it's in Oldham.
Oh, it's on my...

Romeo 423, go ahead.

423, thank you.

I might have to put you on this job
that's coming in.

It's an unexploded bomb.
Half teams allocated.

Alpha 196, yourselves.
Fire are en route.

Please can I ask you to go to
channel 135.

That's channel 135, thank you.

SIREN WAILS

Yeah. Cheers, Chuck.

How many ambulances have you got
left now, Chlo?

I've got two that are on their meal
that are breakable for Cat 1s,

but other than that, everyone's
out on a job.

So basically no-one?

Yeah.

North West Ambulance Service to GMP.

just wanted to confirm the
rendezvous point at this incident, oven

As multiple resources make their way
to scene,

an open radio channel is established
to enable a centralised line

of communication between
the Ambulance Service

and other emergency services.

just to add to that, access in the
event should anything become...

"escalated would be Bar Gap Road,
approaching

from Horsedge Street.

Working together,
they have established the safest

rendezvous point 200m from the
suspect package,

a 100m outer cordon to control
access to the public

and a designated hot zone in the
area

where the threat to the public
is greatest.

I've just been advised,
all resource,

the actual incident is Drake Close.

Hiya, buddy. Are you for the bomb
scare? Yeah. Yeah, yeah.

We've just been told to RVP,
so we're just waiting here?

Yeah.

I'm a bit nervous, Kyle.

What is going on?

I know. We've literally just been...

So there's that one in Bolton.
Ancl then this one.

Senior paramedic Matt will lead
the Ambulance Service

response at SCGFIG.

Romeo 423. If we could get ETHANE as
soon as we get opportunity, over.

Yeah, roger that.

Romeo 423 at scene.

Fire Service have said that police have come
across police... RADIO: Yeah, roger, thanks.

Police have come across something wrapped in
a blanket with wires coming out of it. Right.

There's no patients or anything
up there,

but Anchor Street Car Park
is just there,

so that's why we've not gone
through the cordon.

So high-vis on, helmets on.
Hang fire in your cab for now.

Are you OK? Yeah. So I'm Matt from
the Ambulance Service.

Nice to mee you, Martin. So I'm
acting bronze at the minute, OK?

So we could do with getting a huddle
together with GMP.

As acting bronze commander, Matt
will work with police and fire

to ensure the safety of those in the
immediate area

of the suspect package.

This is a concern,
all this residential.

The situation is it's about six
inch long,

red with a bit of wire hanging out,

but it's quite heavy.
It's about a kilo in weight.

It appears to be taped
on both ends.

OK. Thank you. Yeah.

All right. OK.

So, obviously, FDO's taken it.

EOD are now on their way,
aren't they? Where they coming from?

Bolton. Oh, right. They're in
Bolton, aren't they?

Should be here fairly quick.

With the bomb disposal unit
still dealing with the aftermath

of the controlled explosion
in Bolton,

Matt and the other emergency
services must now wait

for the new package to be examined.

I think we need to get
Blue Coat off that field.

Kids... There's kids there. Yep.

Ancl my daughter might be there,
so definitely

let's get them kids out of the way.

Romeo 423, ETHANE report coming
through.

Yeah, go ahead with your ETHANE
report, over.

Type of incident, it's a possible
improvised device

but unknown at this time.

We currently have a 1 00m cordon
around the device and ambulances

standing back, probably
about 200 metres.

We've got police, fire on scene.

We did have Blue Coat out
on the playing fields and we've made

arrangements for those to be taken
back to school.

Yeah, roger. All received.
Thank you.

What do we know and not
know at the minute, then?

So I've seen the device.

There's a possibility it
could be construed as a pipe bomb.

It could be described
as a large firework.

It's just unknown at the minute.

So my only concern at the minute,
because we're all standing off...

...is if it were to go off...

...and then we'd have to do, like,
a kind of rapid triage. OK.

Yes. OK. Thank you. Thanks.

Bit anxious, are you?

That's a bit worrying, though,
innit?

It looks like a large firework. Mm.

Is it a...? But why would a firework
be wrapped up?

But a firework wouldn't
have a wire on it, would it?

Oh... Like a bit of...

Where would you...?

You just wouldn't leave a firework.

No, and you wouldn't wrap it
in something.

I know. This is why we need to
speak to him, or somebody.

We're not going to get any updates
until they arrive and have a look.

No, we've clone everything
that we can up to now. Yeah.

Suppose we've got to wait for EOD
now. Yep. Make a call.

Other than that... OK. Yeah.

There's incidents that can
just turn on a 10p piece,

and what you thought was once safe

suddenly becomes an unsafe area
to work in.

Ancl we've got sister services
that have skills as well.

Ancl it's about working together
with them to get the best outcome.

What would you describe that as?

Sometimes the general public see
that as us

doing a lot of standing around,

but we're keeping an awful lot
of people safe.

RADIO: The duty officer has advised
that no evacuation is necessary

at this stage.

After detonating the first
suspect package in Bolton,

the bomb squad have now
arrived on scene.

They are one of just five squadrons
across the country specialising

in examining and disarming
potential explosive threats.

I don't like this.

When you arrive at scene,
your emotions are parked.

They've got to be, or else
you'd never get through the jobs.

That's that duck on the top
of the water -

we look very serene on the top,
but our legs are paddling

like hell underneath.

Go on.

Firework.

Pictures don't really do it justice,
because when it comes to me there,

it's no bigger than... No bigger
than that, is it? It's tiny.

Oh, is it? It looked like
about two-inch diameter, didn't it?

Yeah. On the picture,
it looked a lot bigger than...

It always looks bigger on a picture,
doesn't it?

Ancl that's why Snapchat's so famous.

So, yeah, we're going to stand
everyone down. Yeah. Yeah.

CooL

RADIO: Romeo 423
to everybody on this channel.

RADIO BEEPS

Go ahead.

Yeah. Full stand down.

It's been found to be a firework,
so, yeah, full stand down.

Everything's safe.

Did you hear that, Saj?

Yeah, that's all right.
Thanks very much.

Over.

I shall close the channel.

Thanks very much
for everyone's time.

Yeah, roger. Many thanks, all.

You all right after that job?
Yeah.

|n't it great that it was nothing?
Yes. Yes, it's fab.

We were a little bit nervous
when we first came.

Have you heard what...?
It was a firework. Yeah.

Ancl apparently, from the camera
picture,

it looked like a two-inch diameter.

Apparently, it was about
that length.

Good result. Yeah. Good news.

No windows blown out.

On to the next one. Yes. Thank you.
Thank you very much. Thank you!

Take care. See you later.
See you later.

You couldn't write that, could you?

There just wasn't a lot
of information, was there?

And because we were so dose.

I just don't think you can worry
too much about something

that's not happened yet, can you?

That's what they teach
in this job, don't they?

Yeah, something that you're not
involved with at the minute.

Yeah. There's a lot of "what ifs"
in this job. Yeah.

What if this happens?
What if this happens?

But can't worry about what if,
can you? No.

Do you not think
it's, like, scary, though?

Like, obviously, it happened
in Manchester,

and now they're building
another concert...

It's also the biggest.
Yeah, it's massive.

The biggest concert space in...

...Europe, in't it? Yeah. Obviously,
you shouldn't live your life

in fear. We can't live in fear.
No, you shouldn't live your life

in fear, but then it's always
in the back of your mind.

Obviously, I wasn't personally
involved,

I wasn't there, but I was working
in A&E. No, I wasn't there.

Didn't get the police,
the patients,

but just seeing the crews' faces,
bringing six patients in,

you could just see it on their face.

Do you know what I mean? Like, we're
all human, we've all got emotions

and we all make mistakes.
As soon as this uniform comes off,

you're a normal person, aren't you?
People forget that.

Because they had to go home
after that and be a normal person

and reflect on what they've seen
and what they done that night.

Unfortunately, it happened
to Manchester,

but I think Manchester
is one of the biggest

and best sort of cities to stand
together.

Yeah. Like the way Manchester
come together afterwards,

like concerts and... I drove past..
I just got goose bumps.

I drove past Victoria Station
about a week ago

on a job in town.

There's still flowers down now,
it's March, and we're five years on.

People are constantly still putting
flowers down, and I love that.

And then everything with the bees
being tattooed. Did you get one?

No, I didn't get one. No. No...

Yeah. I got one.

On the night of the Manchester
Arena bomb,

we were all running on adrenaline.

Every single person.

Ancl what upsets me is, I've got
staff that went there,

and I know how it's affected them.

Ancl at the time, you deal with it,

cos I'm not an emotional wreck

when I'm at scene,

cos you can't be.

You're the people that have to
deal with it.

But afterwards, it hurts.

Patient breathing and awake?

It's the final hour of the shift.

O97 going on a Cat 1 in Rochdale.

Currently fitting.

The service is still feeling
the pressure...

There's a couple of calls come in
for this RTC. A person trapped.

Unconscious. Got it. Thank you.

...with an estimated wait time
of up to 13 minutes

for a Category 1 response,

six minutes longer than the target
response time.

Ambulance. ls the patient breathing?

Right. 0|<.

So is she gone to her home address?

As the patient's condition
is immediately life-threatening,

the call is prioritised.

097. Yeah, a Cat 1.

Female that's absconded from
hospital

with a large PE.

At high risk of cardiac arrest as
well, apparently.

I'll put the details through to you
now, thank you.

Alpha 097,

Andrea and Michelle, are less than
one minute away from the scene.

Oh, God.

She's going to arrest on me.

I'll tell you that now.

So it's one of these terraces
coming up.

She's coming, is she? All right.
Superb.

It's all right, sweetheart.

I just want to come in and just
have a quick chat with you a minute.

Oh, sweetheart.

It's all right.

All right, sweet.

Take a few nice
deep breaths for us.

You all right? Come on, you're all
right. Give over! Come on.

All right.
A bit of a shock for you.

Oh, God. Come on. Come on, then.

We'll get you out to the vehicle.

You'd better clean that mud off the
floor. I'm going to kill you.

Come on! You're all right.

I love the fact that you're worried
about mud on the floor. Exactly.

Oh, my God.

Do you remember? Yeah, I do.

Yeah. Oh, jeez.

You remember? Yeah.
Sorry, sweet. There you go.

Andrea, isn't it? Yeah.

Hey, God, you've got a good memory.
You've got a good memory.

Nobody can forget her!

Oh, my goodness. Oh, gosh!

Wow.

Right, come on. Swing your legs.

Let's have a chat.

See what...

Gosh. What's happened, then?

I've been going to the doctor's
for a year and I don't feel well.

I'm really out of breath.
I've got COPD. I've got this.

I had a hysterectomy in August.

"We'll send you for a CT to see
if you've got an internal bleed."

Get a phone call Sunday morning,
beginning of September,

"Get to A&E. You're going to
have a heart attack."

I was 39.

I was 40 a few weeks ago.
I started crying.

Oh, sweetheart. Went to A&E.

They kept me in for two weeks.

Said, "You got a clot in your
carotid artery

"and in your superior vena cava."

So I was like, "What?"

They kept me in and said, "After two
weeks, we'll be in touch."

End of November, I get a phone
call off this cardiologist

at Fairfield.

"I've booked you in at Wythenshawe
for an MRI on 30th November.

"Go there."

So I was like, "OK."
I got a lift over to Wythenshawe.

Spent six hours waiting
for this MRI.

I finally got it and they said,
"You're going nowhere.

"You've got tumours in
your thymus gland,

"clots on one side, tumours
on the other.

"We think they're malignant."
Oh, my God.

"We're operating tomorrow."

"You got to be kidding me?!"

Like, two weeks before Christmas,

I were in intensive care.
They cut all down there.

I've had enough.

Ancl I get really... I know I'm
a pain. I get really anxious.

Yeah.

Because I've had 15 operations
in five years.

I've had sepsis and everything.

The house feels like a prison now.

It doesn't feel like...
it just feels prison.

I've put so much weight on, I don't
want anyone to see me. Oh, come on.

SOBBING: I can't walk properly.

SHE SOBS

Oh, gosh. Yeah, you are.

People keep seeing these.

In my head it's like,
this one's 40 centimetres.

She said that's 47. Yeah. Yeah.

Oh, wow.

The pain, the throbbing.

I collapsed in
the GP's this morning.

They sent me, blue-lighted me
over to Fairfield.

They said, "Do you know there's
a lot of poorly people in here?

"People who have had heart attacks.

"People who are
a lot worse than you!"

So I walked out. I got my bag
and walked out. Yeah, I know.

Ancl then they were trying
to ring me.

I were like, "|'m not answering your
phone call. I'm not going back."

You know you need to.

You've got medical...
You know, don't you?

She said they've found a big PE.

I just can't breathe.

I don't care if it kills me
any more. No.

I really don't care.

I feel like I'm just wasting
everybody's time.

You're not wasting anyone's time
at all.

SOBBING: I'm so depressed. I can't
tell anybody how depressed I am.

This isn't me. I'm not like this.

Right.

We're going to get things
sorted for you.

I'm so embarrassed and ashamed.

Look, come on, come on.

Come on.

SOBBING INTENSIFIES

Come on, you're doing fine. Yeah?

We need to get you there.

Yeah? We need to get you there.

Right?

Sorry... We're going to stick
up for you.

Don't apologise. I'm so sorry.

Hmm?

I just want to be me again.
It's not your fault.

I just want to be me again.

Yeah, me grey. I missed my
appointment at Christmas.

Hey, who hasn't got grey hair?

Right, shall we get going?

No, I don't want to go.

LAUGHTER

Yous have been nice.

This is the nicest clay
I've had all year.

She's driving today.

Do you have to drive?

We had a booster seat for her
in the front.

She has it so far to the front
that she can't...

She's lining up against the...

Oh, here we...

They don't make ambulances
for small people! No.

Thanks for being so nice.
Give over!

I was a nurse for five years

and I saw first hand the system

really was sort of crippling
under the pressure.

I felt helpless.

Ancl I just thought,
I'm in the wrong career.

That's it. I need to do it.

So I decided to join
the Ambulance Service.

This has been the best experience
of the NHS I ever had.

LAUGHTER

These two ladies. That's good!

I came into this ambulance feeling
very isolated and alone,

and after being reassured,
I felt, honestly so...

I'll tell you what...
I sound sarcastic but I'm not.

Do you know what? If we've made you
feel better, that's fantastic.

You've been so reassuring and kind.
Let me just check...

Ancl do you know what?
That kindness goes a long way.

As a nurse,
it was totally different.

Yes, there was waiting lists,

but not the waiting lists
as they are now.

Departments are getting busier.

So we're the first port of call,
and we get the brunt of it.

I think it's part of my role
to apologise to patients

and their family, you know,
if they've got, you know,

if they've got this sort of
frustration, and let them air it.

Alpha 097, thank you.

I've got you clear
through on that last job.

Have you got an update on that
last patient, please?

RADIO BEEPS

Yeah, I actually knew this patient.

I did my nursing with this patient.

So she's a qualified nurse.

Roger. And did she actually abscond
from the hospital today?

Over.

Yeah, she did abscond. She was
really, really apologetic.

She was just failed by the system.

Ancl then she just thought,
"That's it.

"I've had enough.
I need to go home."

She realised how poorly she were,

unfortunately. We had
a bit of a laugh, bit of a cry,

a bit of a giggle, some hugs,

and she's actually said
this was the best experience

by the NHS that she's
ever had, which actually...

We'll take that. We'll take that.

It's made our night. Yeah.
Made her clay.

So pat of the back to us.

Roger. I'll give you a pat on the
back as well next time I see you.

No worries. Yeah. I'm glad
everything got sorted for her.

Right, well, it's been a mad clay
and it's getting even worse,

so I'm glad we're off now.

So make your way in if you're
finished. Cheers for today.

Thank you. You too.

Oh! I'll tell you what,
I could have cried with her. Yeah.

I really, really could have cried.

Pitting oedema she had as well.

That would have been really painful.

It was just that she's had enough.

Ancl as a medical professional,
you know as well, don't you?

So that... Yeah.

...kind of makes it worse a little
bit as well, doesn't it?

It does because of all...

Ancl she is an absolute
brilliant nurse.

She used to make me laugh
on District.

She really did. Yeah.

I don't really have any answers,
but if I can make someone's clay

that little bit better...

If it's just a hug, you know,
just give them a reassurance.

just a hug.

Hold a hand.

You know, we're there for them
and we're going to look after them.

Well, Andrew, we survived 12 hours.

just about, because it's proper busy
today. I know.

It's been a proper blur. Yeah.

And you can see
they We stacked now.

It's just going to get worse.
I know.

See yous later. Bye-bye.

As the day shift comes to a close,
demand remains high

across the service, with over 100
patients waiting for an ambulance.

Good evening. Good evening.

It's been manic.

It's been awful.

God help you tonight.

Handover. Earlier today,
we've had a couple of bomb scares.

One in Bolton.

One in Oldham, where they've had
to call out EOD.

Hospitals have been behaving.

Royal Oldham - usual sort of delays.
Yeah.

But apart from that, it's been OK.

Hospitals are stacking.
Are they already?

Wythenshawe, Wigan and Oldham
and now Tameside.

It's just absolutely crazy.

12 hours later, and the team
in Control are back

for another day shift.

169, thank you.
I've just passed a Cat 3 to you.

We have had this job since 4 o'clock
yesterday afternoon.

It's an 85-year-old female.

There are already seven ambulances
being held at hospitals

across Greater Manchester,

unable to respond
to the 145 patients waiting.

Ambulance Service.
ls the patient breathing?

So the patient is not breathing
and not awake?

Romeo 423, go ahead.

Romeo 423, thank you.

This Cat 1 that's coming in
is a 72-year-old male.

Not conscious, not breathing.

Yeah, roger that. Thank you.

SIREN WAILS

Senior paramedic Matt is just
two minutes away

from the call in progress.

Romeo 423, go ahead.

just an update.
It's come in as a death.

I'll keep monitoring it
and let you know.

Thank you.

Hiya. I'm Matt.

All right.

So I'm sure you're aware. Yeah.

Sorry, he's cited.

Does he normally look after himself?

Yeah, yeah. He's blind.

So he was last seen at half five.
Yeah.

But he usually gets up between
seven and half past

and comes for his brew.

So it wasn't expected?

No. OK.

So we will give him a bit of dignity
and put him get back into bed.

All right? He's been down a while,

cos his body temperature's
just low at the minute.

The night staff said he was fine on
his check, which he must have been.

And we've come in because he's not
come out for breakfast and his meds.

"Where is he?"
Yeah. There he is.

You could tell when we
were walking in,

the staff were upset.
He's been here forever.

My first call.

He used to like to smash his
bedroom up because there's too much

in here for a blind man
to work his way around.

So he said he'd have an armchair
in a bed and a set of jars,

and that was it.

And if we put anything else
he'd throw it out.

Well, he's at peace now.

Bless him.

Got that? Yeah, got that.

Slide, slide him in.

Right.

Shall we go to the office?

Cheers, chaps.

Thank you.

So, no next of kin?

No.

So what was William's clay like here?

Every morning he would do his,
what you call them?

Exercises... starfish.

Oh, right.

Come out and go, "Morning!"
And do ten of them.

He'd dance.

We have a singer on a Thursday,
so he comes out and dances

for the singer on Thursday.

His weekly treat would be
a cigarette. Right.

One cigarette per week.

And he knows what day...
Even had a watch on that

told him to remind him
it was cigarette day.

Right.

But he sounds like he enjoyed
his time here.

If he was dancing and...
He loved dancing.

He was HAPPY-

He was. So he died happy.

When there's no next of kin,
what will happen to him now?

So the state acts as his next
of kin.

So it will be social services.

Ah, OK. So I'm also a priest,
as well, in the Church of England.

Oh, are you? Yeah, yeah.

So I have said a little
prayer for him.

Yeah. Yeah, that's good.

The funeral director will organise
a service with social services,

and people will be there
for his funeral.

Will they let us know?
Cos we'd like to go.

Absolutely.

I felt me first calling
to ministry when I was about 11.

I felt God was moving me
to minister

to a congregation, to teach.

So I was supposed to leave
the service and go into

full-time ministry in the church.

But I said, "Actually, I'm going
to go part-time in ministry and stay

"in the service."

Ancl it all just fit into place
like a jigsaw.

Ancl I've just got a different cap
that I wear from time to time.

The hardest thing about being
a paramedic is for those jobs...

...that are completely out
of your control, that you don't

have the tools to be able to help.

There's lots of stuff that are
outside of my control and me faith

gives me hope that somebody else
is, that the people that we go out

to that can't be saved
are going to somewhere better.

212.

just sending you through
a Cat 1 in Oldham.

It's a 66-year-old female,
unresponsive.

It's nearly halfway through
the shift, and the team in Control

are now managing 31 active
Category 1 emergencies.

CPR.

O97. 097. Thank you.

Yeah, the SP's running about
three-minute ETA.

Got an RTC hit by a car, coming in.
Not conscious, not breathing.

Hell of a lot of Cat 1's today.

196. Our apologies. I've had to
break your meal. There is a Cat 1.

Alpha 112. Thank you.

just popped a job through to you
in Oldham. Cat 1, city.

Lots of Cat 1's today.

It's all under control, though.

It's all that years' experience,
you've got.

This is it, you know what I mean?

There's quite a few, in't there?

Yeah.

Let's see what the afternoon
has to bring.

Let's hope it's nice and q...

Don't even dare go there!
HE LAUGHS

Ambulance Service,
is the patient breathing?

Is she making any
response there?

She is on our highest spot
at the moment. OK?

You able to stay there
till the help arrives?

Romeo 423...

..66-year-old female, unconscious...

INDISTINCT

Yeah. Roger. Thank you.

Hello. What's happened?

She's collapsed
and she's non-responsive.

Hello.

Was just about to take her tablets.

OK. What does she suffer with?

She suffers with COPD,

and she had a big stroke
about seven years ago.

What's this lady's name? Sandra.

Sandra.

Hello.

Oh, we're breathing.
That's a good thing.

We're just going to lie her down,
all right?

So, sudden collapse.
She's a known COPD patient.

She's gazing to the left.

It could mean that something
is going on in her head.

A bit like the stroke, or a TIA.

But even when I'm shouting
from the right, she's gazing...

She's still gazing to the left.

Right.

Boss, can I just get in there
so that we can get a needle

in her arm?

The best thing you can
do is just come out.

Yeah, just come out.

So we've got to give her some fluids
to start off with

cos her blood pressure's
a bit too low.

All right? And hopefully she'll come
round a wee bit.

Can you talk to us?

PATIENT MUMBLES

There we go. Bit of noise.

just hang fire, Sandra.

It's all right, sweet. Mum?

Hiya, sweetheart, I'm here.
Don't worry. I'm here.

They're over here.

Blood pressure's a lot better now.

Yeah. Right. Let's get a scoop
and we'll walk out.

Sandra?

Hello? Have you got a headache?

Does your head hurt?

Yeah?

She's had another stroke,
hasn't she? I think so, yeah.

I'm here. I'm here.

I've got you, sweetheart.

Right, let's get moving.

Let's get you sorted.

OK. All right. There we go.

Are you good that side?
All right.

Try and get that arm in.

On three. One, two, three.

Got a blanket?

Yeah, boss.

Can you speak with Fairfield
for a stroke pre-alert, amber?

65-year-old female.

TCS13.

Onset time, 10am.

It's a it's a complete collapse
that she's had

but with a right-sided slump.

She has had a previous CVA,
which has left her with

a right-sided weakness.

Right, Fairfield...

So Fairfield we're going to.

Yeah. Are you travelling?

Yeah. OK, come this way.

There you go, sweet.

just pop on there.

Mum?

I'm here, I'm here.

AUTOMATED: Mind your head.

I'm here, I'm here...

We'll look after her.

I'm ready.

All right. Take care.

No worries.

It's OK. I've got you.
I've got you.

just hold on. I've got you.

I'm going nowhere, darling.
You're OK.

Sandra will be transported to
the nearest stroke unit,

nine miles away, to be seen
immediately by doctors in resus.

Ambulance Service,
is the patient breathing?

ls the patient awake?

Today, has he had a seizure that
lasted five minutes or more?

In Control, call handlers are
answering one new call

every 15 seconds.

Any change in the shapes
of the bones of the face?

Seems a lot of reasons that
they could be experiencing this now.

It's not necessarily cardiac arrest.

In my clinical training, I have been
advised, in this moment in time,

we would recommend giving him CPR,
because of the way

that he's breathing.

We are very, very busy at the moment
with long, significant delays -

a lot of emergencies
at the moment. OK?

What's causing you most concern
for an ambulance right now?

Is it the breathing
or is it the back pain?

Now, due to severe pressures, we are
experiencing a high demand.

You was told when you called,

that we do have long delays
at the moment.

We have got delays
of over nine hours.

I can see you've been waiting
one hour, 37 minutes.

So, as I say, there's delays of up
to nine hours for an ambulance.

Wowse rs !

That's not good, is it?
It's not good that, no.

just getting more oxygen in.
That's all.

Is that what it was?

Is that what you were doing?

Eight miles away, in Bury,
Alpha 097, Andrea and Michelle,

have just dropped their patient
off at hospital.

Alpha 097.

O97. Thank you.

I've just passed
a job through to you.

It's a Cat 3. This patient
has had a fall.

She banged her head above
the right eye.

just let you know as well,
that this patient did lose

her husband approximately two weeks
ago and is extremely upset.

So, just to make you aware
on that one, please.

Aww, bless her. Thank you.
I shall speak to you shortly.

Oh, what a shame.
Right, we are mobile.

Thanks very much.

Oh, God.

Better get my tissues at the ready.

It's this one, in't it? Yeah.

Hello.

Gwen. Gwen.

Hello!

How can we help you today?
I don't know.

I just...

just must have lost my balance.
Had a bit of a tumble?

Yeah.

Um...

Banged my head.

Got a bit of a bump.

Yeah, but it's not much.

All right. And what else
do you suffer with?

Parkinson's.
Parkinson's.

Yeah. What's she on?

Clopidog rel. Clopidog rel.

Not been here long, have you?

No. No? We'd only been in...

Can't tell you, I'm Sorry.

She moved in with her husband
because he was end of life

and he passed away a few
weeks back, didn't he?

I'm so sorry.
Oh, bless you, sweetheart.

just before his 88th birthday.

Oh. On Valentine's day.

Oh, bless.

Oh.

So, how long were you and
Patrick.... I'll just have that.

...married for?

30 years.
Where did you meet?

In a pub. In a pub?
Did he swoon you?

On Oldham Road.

Oh. A jazz night.
Oh, fabulous.

just a scratch, sorry...

Ouch. Sorry.

It's a long time, 30 years,
isn't it?

Yeah.

I just sit here and I...

You miss him, don't you, sweet?

Yeah. And when my sister comes,
she sits in this place. Right.

And I... Oh, I thought it would
pass. Yeah.

Am I going? Am I...?

Unfortunately, because you've had
this fall, and you can't really

remember that much about it...

I know you said you fell
over there, but...

I don't know if you've lost
consciousness for a bit or...

Ancl you're on blood thinners.

We've got a bit of, a bit
of a bubble on your head.

We'll need to scan you.
They need to have a look at you.

Right?

That's much better.

All right. All right.

Got everything? Yeah?

You tell me, then. Yeah.

Well, we'll all need a scan, then,
won't we?!

LAUGHTER

Right, then, up here.

There we go.

Ancl then I want your bum up here.

Right?

No, you're all right.
No. Give over, no.

I'll try and go gentle.

LAUGHTER

Are you... Are you happy, Chelle?

Yeah. Yeah.

Absolutely.

And why not?

No, absolutely not.

I don't think you're mad at all.

I used to talk to me mum
all the time, when she passed away.

Did you? Yeah.

I used to talk to her when I was
getting ready in the morning

and... All the time.

Nothing wrong with that at all,
because they're still with us

in there, aren't they? Yeah.

Aren't they, sweetheart?

I'll just pop in and see
what's going on, Chelle.

All right. Thank you.

Are we all right?

We can go in. Perfect.

We can go in.

Like going for a ride, in't it?

LAUGHTER

Thank you for that.

MUSIC: Praise You

# We've come a long,
long way together

# Through the hard times
and the good... #

I think the church can learn
so much from the communities

that we live in.

I think there's so much to learn
about how people support each other,

and I think that the community needs

an intravenous injection of hope...

...and that's something that
the church has bundles of.

That's what being a paramedic
is all about, is just offering hope.

# I have to praise you
like I should

# We've come a long... #

Knowing I help people every clay
is what drives me to keep going.

I've seen the NHS

at its absolute best and I have
seen it at its worst.

Which is a shame, because the NHS is
just brilliant when it works best,

and it will always be one
me greatest honours of me life

to have served as a paramedic.

# I have to praise you

# I have to praise you... #

Let's get home.

You can't do this, can you?

LAUGHTER

No!

That is brilliant, actually.

The fact that you can stand up
in the cab.

We've had a lot of Cat 1's.

Lots of serious incidents.
A lot of hospital delays.

Yeah. Ancl that's not helped.

But we're still here, still smiling.

I'm going to go, Jack. I'll see you
later. See you bright and early.

See you later. Love yous all.

# I have to praise you like I should

# I have to praise you

# I have to praise you

# I have to praise you... #