Ok, this may be a contentious issue and I don't mean to cause offence, but this is not just coming from the 'me' who works on ambulances. My opinion is partly geography biased, being in a city no one is ever more than 3 miles from a hospital, this means no one is ever more than a £6 taxi journey to a hospital, and this is where my frustration comes from. I fully understand that if you live in the middle of the countryside, 45 minutes from the hospital with no means of transport then yes, an ambulance is totally appropriate, but in the city I am sure any pregnant woman could save the cab fare over a 9 month period. By all means, call an ambulance if you need one but a contraction, waters breaking or a 'show' is not, and will not, ever be an 'emergency'! Please read this post in the spirit in which it is meant, an ambulance girl fed up with playing 'taxi' to expectant mothers whose partner follows in the car and lives 400 yards from hospital! If you need us, call us!
“27 year old female. In Labour”
So what! It’s an all too common job. A woman in labour calls an ambulance for a lift to hospital. She isn’t ill, she isn’t dying, she is going to give birth. Giving birth of a function of nature, thats’s what we do. Women have been giving birth since time began and I can assure you, that was long before the invention of the ambulance. Despite our obvious displeasure at being sent we drove there, lights and sirens and ‘save’ another pregnant woman too lazy to arrange her own transport.
You don’t suddenly give birth. There is a 9 month pregnancy leading up to it. During that time you would have thought a lift could have been arranged. If not, a taxi?! A saving of just 25p a week throughout the pregnancy should be enough to cover it. Failing that, most people know someone or have a neighbor who transports their litter in a Chelsea Tractor. Bug them. Not us! Obviously, if something is wrong, or you have the urge to push, then that is a different matter but don’t take the piss.
We arrived on scene, grabbed all our kit; response bag, oxygen bag, maternity pack, entonox, Paediatric Advanced Life Support kit, inco-pads (yes, it weighs a ton) and headed to the front door. It took some negotiating to get us and our stuff past the 3 cars on the driveway but we made it. Mum-to-be was dressed and ready to go, bags packed and in the hallway, Dad-to-be clearly to excited to drive was fretting about everything, as was various other family and friends who were going to follow in the car. Contractions were coming along nicely, every 6-7 minutes, no show, waters not broken. This really was a life threatening medical emergency. Oh, and they hadn’t phoned the maternity unit or midwife. It’s OK though because we can do that for them too. Anyway, all aboard, boxes ticked, i’s dotted and t’s crossed we drove the 1.6 miles to hospital. Another life saved.
As mind boggling as this is, and as annoying as I find materni-taxis this isn’t why i’m blogging about it. Shortly after the job I tweeted the following on twitter:
“You’ve had 9 months to plan, call a taxi, get a lift from another mum in a Chelsea tractor. It’s labour. You’re not ill. You don’t need 999”
Within 3 minutes of this tweet I received the following message via my Facebook page, which quite frankly, made me seethe. The message was as follows:
“A woman in labour has every right to call an ambulance. The ambulance has all the medical equipment and the paramedics have the medical knowledge to deal with a birth, a taxi does not and neither does a neighbour with a 4x4. Show me where it says a woman in labour cant call an ambulance. Also while you’re at it show me the HPC code of ethics, as i think your statement is way off and to discourage any woman in labour from calling an ambulance is medical negligence. I would invite you to prove me wrong, if you can fine, but bet you cant??? A woman in labour without a way to get to hospital is hardly a sprained wrist and she much more in need for an ambulance than an elderly person who has just fallen over. I suppose you’re going to go onto long term illness and tell me i cant call an ambulance when my daughter is in DKA.”
Are you serious? What a deluded, self-centred fool. It is people like this which cause all the problems in this country. People who think they have the divine right to an ambulance whatever the circumstance, it’s selfish and greedy and exactly what i’d expect if this vulgar human called 999. Yes, you have a right to call an ambulance, if its an emergency, but normal labour is not. You’ll also be reassured to know that the only training a paramedic has on maternity is a 2 day course. We are given a very brief overview on how to deliver a baby in an emergency. Admittedly taxi’s and neighbours haven't had the luxury of a 2 day course but they don’t need it to drive your lazy arse to hospital. They need exactly what we need. Money for petrol. No where does it say a woman in labour can’t call an ambulance, it isn't advised though. The following has been copy and pasted directly off my employers website:
“Please think carefully before calling an ambulance in pregnancy or normal labour. Call your midwife, birth centre or labour ward in the first instance for help and advice. Ambulances are needed for life-threatening emergencies, and normal labour is not an emergency. During your pregnancy, it is important you discuss with your midwife the signs of normal labour and plan your transport to your chosen place for the birth. Initially any pregnancy or labour concerns should be raised with your midwife or birth centre. This includes worries with foetal movements, or if feeling unwell, as they can advise you further.”
To be honest, a) I can’t be arsed b) I don’t have the inclination to and c) I don't care enough to trawl through pages and pages of codes of ethics to find a sentence that will make my point and appease you. Your comment on the elderly speaks volumes about your character too. You are ill informed about the medical needs of pregnant women and to even suggest that a woman in normal labour is more deserving than a 92 year old lying on the floor with a fractured neck of femur is laughable. It’s people like you that cause these genuine patients to be left on the floor for 4 hours +. And as to your snipe about my sick leave, you don’t know me, you’ll never know me and what my sickness has to do with your daughters DKA I don’t know. What chance does she have anyway when your archaic opinions are what she has as an example to follow. No wonder the NHS is in crisis.
Obviously, I wouldn’t want to deter anyone who is in need from calling 999. On the rare occasions where an ambulance is needed for an obstetric emergency I would want someone to call. If:
- You are immediately about to give birth with a strong urge to push.
- If there is fresh bleeding which is more than an egg cupful (or two changes of pads).
- If you have severe abdominal pain that continues and persists after a contraction.
- If the baby’s cord is noticeable.
- If you are suffering from other medical emergencies, such as breathing difficulties or chest pain.