Tuesday 30 June 2015

We're overlooked and often abused but emergency call takers save lives

We're overlooked and often abused but emergency call takers save lives I’ve stopped a man from ending his life and helped a mother deliver CPR to her child. It’s upsetting when people say, ‘Shut up, you’re just a call taker’

“My life’s not worth living … No one will care if I’m no longer here. I’m going to end it all,” cries the man on the other end of the phone.

It is 3.44am on a Thursday morning and I am more than just an emergency call taker – I am a reassuring voice, a friend. I am silently willing the paramedics to race around the corner, even though I know that they are still four minutes away. I am the only person in the world who can stop this stranger from ending his life. It’s a daunting task to have someone’s life in your hands and only your voice to save them. Somehow, I manage to calm him down until the paramedics arrive. Continue reading... The Guardian

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