Roger believes this can be dealt with by good organisation. He keeps an eye on staff and expects his managers to do likewise. Stress can be minimised by firm decisions, by giving support, by being polite, by saying thank you, by allowing the odd mistake. Ambulance personnel can come through horrific experiences, yet be stressed out by a seemingly minor incident. One of the most difficult experiences is comforting an elderly person devastated by the death of their partner.
Leadership is about how to manage people - with honesty, truth, care and compassion.
We in the ambulance service believe very strongly that, with better management and more modern approaches, our colleagues in the health authority or the hospitals could perform to the same response performance as ourselves. We aren't thanked for that. The down side of the job is an excess of bureaucracy, meetings and paperwork. As the professionals in the service, we adopt a paternalistic attitude of thinking we know best. The enormous dedication of the people on the front line constantly renews Roger's enthusiasm for the job.