Ambulance man Andy retires after 40 years of service

Sunday 09 December 2018

Long serving ambulance clinician Andy Barrett is to retire at the end of December after a 40-year career with the ambulance service in the UK and Guernsey.

Mr Barrett joined the Yorkshire ambulance service in 1978 where he initially worked on the Patient Transport Service before training to become an 'ambulance man'. He qualified as a paramedic in 1997 and led pioneering work with heart patients in the UK before moving to Guernsey in 2006.

When he started in 1978, his friends told him he would never last in the job but 40 years on he is now retiring from a role he came to love.

Mr Barrett said: “My mates told me it wasn’t the job for me, because I had a tendency to faint at the sight of blood. So, one night in the pub they bet me I wouldn’t last three months. We each put £10 into a jar behind the bar. Three months later the landlord got it down and I won the £100 contents. There was a lot of beer drunk that night!”

Pictured: Mr Barrett through the years. 

Ambulance work in the 1970s was still fairly basic. Mr Barrett said: “We were still driving the old Bedford ambulances with the sliding doors. There were no sirens in those days, the vehicles had electric bells which sounded when you pressed the button. We were very excited when the new sirens come in.”

Mr Barrett initially qualified as an ambulance man spending six weeks on a residential course at the Keithley training school, where he studied alongside students from the Hong Kong ambulance service. He qualified in November 1979 and still has vivid memories of his first shift. It was a night shift and Andy and his crew mate, Barry, were called to a road accident on the Leeds Ring Road involving a visiting rugby team from Australia. There were 16 casualties and four fatalities.

“It was absolutely horrendous. I remember saying to Barry, 'what do I do'? He told me to walk around the scene, see what we were dealing with and don’t touch anything yet. Meanwhile he was calling for more ambulances.” Unlike today ambulance crews didn’t carry medical drugs and their equipment was fairly primitive.

“All we could do was basic first aid and apply some bandages”, said Mr Barrett.

Pictured: Amubluance at Guernsey Ambulance Station

Over his 40-year career, Mr Barrett has delivered 51 babies. At least three of whom where named after him, including Andi as a girl’s name.

During the 1990s the profession of paramedics began to develop with enhanced training and greater clinical skills, allowing qualified ambulance staff to provide more advanced pre-hospital care. Mr Barrett was selected for the paramedic suitability course in 1995 and qualified as a paramedic on 6 June 1997.

Mr Barreett moved to Guernsey in 2006 and joined the St John Ambulance & Rescue Service. He continued in the role of paramedic until four years ago when he decided to practise as an Emergency Medical Technician. “As I was nearing the end of my career, I thought it was time to step back and let the youngsters do all the difficult stuff,” he said.

The ambulance profession has changed and developed over the past 40 years, with the introduction of more enhanced clinical skills, advances in medical technology and a wider selection of drugs available to clinicians.

“It’s definitely more professional now, but one thing that has stayed the same, it has always been a caring profession. I learnt from some very hard, but very caring men.”

Mr Barrett said his proudest moment was being presented with his Long Service Medal by the then Lieutenant Governor, Air Marshall Peter Walker. “I’m proud of what I do. It is such a lovely feeling when you know you’ve made a difference. I have been tapped on the shoulder and stopped in the street and been thanked by a patient whom I’d treated after a cardiac arrest.”

As he prepares for his final shift Mr Barrett says he will miss the people – patients and colleagues. “It is like a big family. I’ve had ambulance families in all my stations, but in Guernsey the whole ambulance service is like your family. There are times when they are just as important as your real family.”

His advice for the new members of the ambulance family is: “80% of what we do is communication, backed up with skills and knowledge. Do your study, talk to your patients and explain what you are doing. Respect your patients and they will respect you. I fell in love with the job on day one and I still love it now.”

St John Emergency Ambulance Service Chief Officer, Ali Marquis said “Andy has dedicated the whole of his working life to caring for others. He has a wonderful way with patients and has been a great asset to the service. His good humour combined with his experience will be missed by patients and staff alike. We wish him a long and enjoyable retirement."

Pictured: Andy Barrett.