Working as a 999 / NHS call handler

Please excuse the anonymous username.

Lots of recent talk on here about ambulance and fire service, rnli etc has got me thinking about pursuing a more rewarding day job. Has anyone any experience of ambulance (or fire/police) service call handlers?

I wonder if a new career and shift work would be too much to take on in early 30s with a young family.

I have enough experience in the fringes of emergency services to think I would enjoy the core work.

Would be great to hear some stories from the ‘inside’.

Thanks

Yes, I have done, mainly 111 calls, but for the Ambulance Service, but many genuine emergency calls taken during a shift

Shall reply to any questions tomorrow. Shall give you one ‘eye opener’ … When I first visited Ambulance call centre I was surprised how few staff there were taking calls.

It is tough, 10-12 hour shifts, no let up in calls. I’m a cold hearted soul and even then some calls got to me. Hoax callers/time wasters get on your tits. You finish one call then beep right on to the next one not knowing if that previous PT made it or not.

Great working with (as in sat next to) Nurses, Dr’s, Paramedics – Some been in the service 40+ years, lots of stories to tell

Worked on the road in ambos for longer than I care to share. Have been in the control room many a time; and have nothing but respect for the call takers, but seriously, couldn’t do their job. Constant, non stop calls, micromanaged scripts to follow, telling offs for deviation from the script or choosing the wrong line of questioning, target times to obtain info, and that’s all before you take the unfortunately too often obnoxious public into account. All for some of the lowest paid staff in the Trust? Rather you than me bud. Get out in the open. Meet real people. Choose lumberjacking or something.

Ooh I may have seen you at MP or over the road at NP v8!

Yes absolutely right with everything there. But, the “script” (Pathways) is there to cover your arse as the call taker and obviously to ensure the PT gets the right care. And yes, it has to be said word for word (I could recite the chest pain pathway in my sleep, and the abdo pain one)

A bloke I worked with came from this & said it was quite stressful.
He now knows what ‘stressful’ actually means now he’s in the prison service.

Watch AMBULANCE bbc 2 thursday nights and i player, lots of in call centre footage, little swearing at some of the bloddy idiots who ring up wasting time.

Ooh I may have seen you at MP or over the road at NP v8!

‘Tis quite likely <waves>. I’d be the bloke who’s popped in to chat to the logistics chap whilst looking a little ill at ease and feeling a bit trapped… it’s a strange environment for road staff; feels like you’re venturing into the lair of the beast… esp MP.(thats maybe just me being a bit dramatic, mind)

The control ops in my brigade are having a terrible time. Cut to the bone to the point where it simply doesn’t work, with more responsibilities being forced on them due to hair brained management decisions going wrong, as we told them they would.

Their job has been made impossible and sickness is through the roof. The penny may have finally half dropped with the powers that be but it’s a long way from being sorted.

All that being so I’m sure there are still decent control rooms about to work in. Just make sure you are looking somewhere with plenty of people on shift.

What v8ninety said. Much more fun and autonomy out on the road. As well as fresh air (till you go indoors on the odd occasion). I have the highest regard for my colleagues on the phones. Couldn’t do their job though. Come play with us!

What v8ninety said. Much more fun and autonomy out on the road. As well as fresh air (till you go indoors on the odd occasion). I have the highest regard for my colleagues on the phones. Couldn’t do their job though. Come play with us!

Have a good friend who is a police call handler. It sounds awful. Some of the most harrowing calls coming through. Long shifts and no counselling built in and by God does it seem essential

A very rewarding job but very stressful, can be huge amounts of pressure, tragic, highs and lows the money isn’t great, the hours long and yes performance managed. Lots absolutely love it though for the rewards and companionship.

As project says watch Ambulance to see what the call handlers go through.

You will get counselling support any worthy trust has this process in place, especially for the one you’re thinking about applying for. 😉

Former clinical advisor in 111/999 (paramedic) it’s a good life, starting wage is about £20k for call handlers, plenty of overtime, 12 hour shifts on my trust so 3/4 days a week working. It can be hard, frustrating, upsetting and stressful. It can also be funny, exciting and you’ll never be short of a “you won’t believe this…” story.

It’s hard on family’s. I was a paramedic when I met my wife, so she’s only known me work shifts. As time goes by it put a lot of strain on our marriage, it’s hard having kids, everything pretty much had to revolve around me. My rota, my sleep pattern etc.

It’s worth doing, you’ll either love it or hate it, and most say they hate it but never leave, but don’t go in blind, consider the wider impact on your family.

Your experience may vary, I loved being in the ambulance servide, it defined me and made me feel like i was doing good, but I’m glad I’m out now!

You will get counselling support any worthy trust has this process in place, especially for the one you’re thinking about applying for.

I’m not sure which service you are referring to or where but I know of a Police service in the north east where counselling is not available. You may be thinking of a different place, but counselling is not a given

He’s talking about the Ambulance service Charlie.

If you are nearly but not quite as obstructive and dismissive as a doctor’s receptionist then you may be qualified for a job in a police control room.

😆

I was a police call-taker and still have a few friends there. They are on old style contracts which are massively better than the new ones and they are still looking elsewhere. The new contracts are horrible. There is no set shift pattern and you only get a few weeks notice of when you are working. This makes life impossible if you have to arrange childcare. As a result turnover is constant. A large percentage of newbies are only there as a way in to the police. Obviously this is just my force but I’m told the shift pattern-setting computer is used by lots of forces so check the T&Cs

The calls are also constant and there is plenty of pressure to perform against call centre targets which doesn’t seem right when answering 999 calls.

That said there are pluses. There is certainly no script in our force and some days you really do feel you have made a difference. The people working there were also great. There’s counselling if you need it, but I never knew anyone who did. That’s what your mates in the room are for.

My sister has done it for years, I’ve never heard her say a good word about it.

You will hear people vomit, pee, crap, burp, fart, choke, take their last breath down the phone at you…. Even give birth whilst sat on loo

You’ll hear drunks, swearing, abuse, fear, anger, hate, confusion. On Christmas Day I had an elderly and very confused, inchorent lady, who was in clear distress call, I couldn’t get any details from her… that took ages to trace her find her with additional help from the Police

People will call you in absolute panic, either through fear or a mental health condition, you’re there to calm them, reassure them all whilst getting as much info as you can from them.

Locating where the callers are isn’t easy, yes at times you will have to ask them if they know the street they are on, are they near a shop, what name is it, do you know the name of the church who’s graveyard you are sat in (that one I even asked the details on the gravestone so I could google that person to see if I could locate where they were buried)

You’ll have the regulars who call over 10 times a night, who know which answers to give to get an ambulance out, and no you can’t say no, you have to send a crew

And for me, worst of all, were people who were suicidal, they almost never wanted to be found, but you were often their last hope, I don’t know how many people I “talked down”, quite a few. Having depression and being suicidal in the past helped me relate to them and help them…. One of the last suicidal calls I took was the last call of the night for me, I was late finishing (yeah you can’t always just hang up and go home when your shift is done) it was a local person, who’s road I could pass on the way home if I went home the long way, I took that detour and just parked up at the end of the road and watched them walk safely in to the ambo.

It’s a tough job, long hours, relentless calls, poor pay, stressful…. Apparently the main ambo control room had a stomach bug going around, staff couldn’t go home due to staffing levels, apparently vomit and s**t stunk the place out

I left there and stacked shelves for a couple of months on run up to Christmas

In the case of working for an Ambulance service you’d do very well to remember that in the words of Peter Bradley (former LAS CEO & AACE) and Neil LeChavalier (SWAST CoO):

we’re a caring service that doesn’t care for its staff

.

Now go figure…….

Luckily we’ve moved on from that qwerty.

No you have not.

That quote from Neil LC was in the last year.

Spare me your typical management bile contesting otherwise. Whilst your sat in an office making everything look rosy for those above, those on the front line get shat on, year after year, nothing changes.

Ambulance services, imo, are guilty of corporate neglect towards staffs welfare on many levels.

Edit: apologies if that comes across as blunt and personal to you Drac, it’s not aimed at you directly, just the Services. My comments still stand though.

Woah! Stop dude.

My role is 90% for staff welfare so chill out. For almost 3 years we have been working hard to reverse what was once true, staff have fed back to use the improvements and thanked us personally for what we have done.

I’ve just spent 2 hours at RTC so no I don’t sit in the office, I’ve only got time to answer here while I get my lunch.

Edit: It’s Ok I understand you’re rant.

So, still fancy it OP?

I still need to watch the new series of Ambulance and see if any old colleagues are on it (and any of the callers)

Just wanted to say thanks to the contributors on here. I have a few different priorities at the moment but still considering options, including frontline (where my real preference would be!).

Exellent! Go for it don’t sit and think what if.