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999 - My Life on the Frontline of the Ambulance Service
In this updated edition, taking in his experiences during the coronavirus pandemic, Dan Farnworth brings vividly to life his astonishing times as a medic working on the frontline of the UK Ambulance Service. When the 999 call goes out, he has little idea what he will find - and how he will cope with the challenges he faces when he gets there.
Having worked in the emergency services for more than fifteen years, Dan Farnworth has seen it all. There was the time he was called to take away a dead body - only for the 'corpse' to jolt back into life and demand to know what he was doing in her house. Earlier in his career, he unwittingly disturbed a crime scene as he shared the sad news of the victim's death with her son. Along with the 18,000 other paramedics in the UK who serve us day and night, Dan constantly finds himself pushed into extraordinary circumstances where he not only has to deal with those he has been sent to help, but also their worried families and friends - and even with irate drivers who object to his ambulance getting in their way as he desperately works to save someone's life.
There is a special camaraderie among paramedics, and 999 - Life on the Frontline is packed with stories that are sometimes sad, occasionally hilarious, often moving but always inspirational . However, the work also takes its emotional toll, and Dan won an ITV NHS Heroes Award after setting up the Our Blue Light Campaign that helps those in his profession suffering from PTSD - something that struck him after a truly shocking event. His story will make you see our ambulance service in a completely new way.
Having worked in the emergency services for more than fifteen years, Dan Farnworth has seen it all. There was the time he was called to take away a dead body - only for the 'corpse' to jolt back into life and demand to know what he was doing in her house. Earlier in his career, he unwittingly disturbed a crime scene as he shared the sad news of the victim's death with her son. Along with the 18,000 other paramedics in the UK who serve us day and night, Dan constantly finds himself pushed into extraordinary circumstances where he not only has to deal with those he has been sent to help, but also their worried families and friends - and even with irate drivers who object to his ambulance getting in their way as he desperately works to save someone's life.
There is a special camaraderie among paramedics, and 999 - Life on the Frontline is packed with stories that are sometimes sad, occasionally hilarious, often moving but always inspirational . However, the work also takes its emotional toll, and Dan won an ITV NHS Heroes Award after setting up the Our Blue Light Campaign that helps those in his profession suffering from PTSD - something that struck him after a truly shocking event. His story will make you see our ambulance service in a completely new way.
320 pages, Paperback
Published January 7, 2021
48 people are currently reading
644 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 88 reviews
February 24, 2020
A long overdue look at our amazing yet criminally undervalued ambulance service, told by an emergency technician and trainee paramedic. This is one of those books I hammered out in a day, it was very compelling.
Having read plenty of nursing and medical based memoirs over the years, I only realised when I picked up my copy of 999 that I can’t recall seeing other ambulance workers tales on the shelves. It’s about time someone did it!
The author eloquently describes some of the more memorable cases from his career, ranging from his days as a fresh faced eighteen year old working as an emergency call handler, through to current day. With three children by the age of twenty one, Dan describes how he struggled to fit his work and family life harmoniously. The latter half of his book is focused on mental health within the emergency services, and how the author has campaigned for better mental health support for his colleagues. I agree in his closing chapter that his book will serve as a catalyst for emergency service providers to look at how they support their workers. As a nurse myself, and as a user of the ambulance service (thankfully not a regular one), I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who uses our national health system.
Having read plenty of nursing and medical based memoirs over the years, I only realised when I picked up my copy of 999 that I can’t recall seeing other ambulance workers tales on the shelves. It’s about time someone did it!
The author eloquently describes some of the more memorable cases from his career, ranging from his days as a fresh faced eighteen year old working as an emergency call handler, through to current day. With three children by the age of twenty one, Dan describes how he struggled to fit his work and family life harmoniously. The latter half of his book is focused on mental health within the emergency services, and how the author has campaigned for better mental health support for his colleagues. I agree in his closing chapter that his book will serve as a catalyst for emergency service providers to look at how they support their workers. As a nurse myself, and as a user of the ambulance service (thankfully not a regular one), I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone who uses our national health system.
August 12, 2020
Insightful, honest and well written.
One of the best autobiographical accounts of an emergency worker that I’ve read.
4 stars ✨
One of the best autobiographical accounts of an emergency worker that I’ve read.
4 stars ✨
January 27, 2021
my favourite of all the ambulance staff memoirs I've read so far! it was very personal and had a particular focus on the narrators mental health and it sounds like he's done some excellent work in that area to help benefit others in his position
October 27, 2020
This was such an interesting and insightful look at the life of paramedics and what the NHS in general are going through.
I really didn't know much about what paramedics go through. This book really opened my eyes to the kinds of cases paramedics are called to and the stresses and strains of the job.
Some of the stories in this book were funny, some were heartwarming but some were heartbreaking.
I can't even imagine what these men and women see every week. I can't believe how little help, support and appreciation they receive. They do absolutely do an amazing job, something I know I could never do.
It really begs the question why are they paid so little and why some people are just so selfish and rude to paradmecis. I really couldn't comprehend some of the abuse Dan and his colleagues have received. Its disgusting.
If you are at all interested in the life of a paramedic, please read this book its incredibly eye opening and powerful.
TW: real life descriptions of stabbings, child abuse, murder, suicide, depression, self harm, illness and death
I really didn't know much about what paramedics go through. This book really opened my eyes to the kinds of cases paramedics are called to and the stresses and strains of the job.
Some of the stories in this book were funny, some were heartwarming but some were heartbreaking.
I can't even imagine what these men and women see every week. I can't believe how little help, support and appreciation they receive. They do absolutely do an amazing job, something I know I could never do.
It really begs the question why are they paid so little and why some people are just so selfish and rude to paradmecis. I really couldn't comprehend some of the abuse Dan and his colleagues have received. Its disgusting.
If you are at all interested in the life of a paramedic, please read this book its incredibly eye opening and powerful.
TW: real life descriptions of stabbings, child abuse, murder, suicide, depression, self harm, illness and death
March 16, 2024
Loved how personal this book was! It really gave an insight into life as a paramedic
July 15, 2023
3.5 stars
December 16, 2023
A call comes in, and the sirens start—but the ambulances don't peel out of the station, because they're probably already on the road, coming from another job. In 999, Farnsworth describes his career in the Ambulance Service, from taking 999 calls to training to go out on calls himself.
This is a pretty straightforward medical memoir. It's more anecdotes than extended stories (good, because it means more different stories; bad, because they aren't as fleshed out—ideally, you'd have a mix), though as the book goes on Farnsworth talks more and more about mental health within the Ambulance Service and his work to bring the importance of good mental health into the spotlight. He also makes an effort to talk about all patients with respect and to talk about treating them all with respect, especially when they're on various parts of society's margins, which I appreciate—you'd be surprised by how often medical memoirs really let the writers' biases show.
A couple of quick quotations:
After Farnsworth was assaulted on the job: The following day, a police office calls to tell me that my assailant has been given a formal warning and ordered to pay me compensation: £20, to be paid in instalments. Every week for the next two years, 20p will land in my account. There's some more of that gallows humour I was talking about. (86) I highlighted this not just for the gallows humour (which...yes...it's totally absurd), but also because it's a reminder of how much the guy in question must be struggling. Needing to pay that fine in instalments of 20p, in the 21st century...? That says something about the ways people can fall through the cracks.
And this, just because it's both funny and observant: What's funny is, when I give talks in schools...they ask a lot of the same stuff as adults. Little boys, just like grown men, will ask how fast my ambulance goes (not much more than 90mph, unless you're going downhill with the wind behind you. Although I tell them it goes as fast as Lewis Hamilton's car). And they'll also want to know the worst thing I've seen. That suggests a morbid curiosity about what can go wrong with a body is inbuilt in humans. But when a little kid asks that question, I'll tell them that I once saw someone being sick. And if I really want to give them a thrill, I'll tell them that I once saw someone being sick twice. (121)
This is a pretty straightforward medical memoir. It's more anecdotes than extended stories (good, because it means more different stories; bad, because they aren't as fleshed out—ideally, you'd have a mix), though as the book goes on Farnsworth talks more and more about mental health within the Ambulance Service and his work to bring the importance of good mental health into the spotlight. He also makes an effort to talk about all patients with respect and to talk about treating them all with respect, especially when they're on various parts of society's margins, which I appreciate—you'd be surprised by how often medical memoirs really let the writers' biases show.
A couple of quick quotations:
After Farnsworth was assaulted on the job: The following day, a police office calls to tell me that my assailant has been given a formal warning and ordered to pay me compensation: £20, to be paid in instalments. Every week for the next two years, 20p will land in my account. There's some more of that gallows humour I was talking about. (86) I highlighted this not just for the gallows humour (which...yes...it's totally absurd), but also because it's a reminder of how much the guy in question must be struggling. Needing to pay that fine in instalments of 20p, in the 21st century...? That says something about the ways people can fall through the cracks.
And this, just because it's both funny and observant: What's funny is, when I give talks in schools...they ask a lot of the same stuff as adults. Little boys, just like grown men, will ask how fast my ambulance goes (not much more than 90mph, unless you're going downhill with the wind behind you. Although I tell them it goes as fast as Lewis Hamilton's car). And they'll also want to know the worst thing I've seen. That suggests a morbid curiosity about what can go wrong with a body is inbuilt in humans. But when a little kid asks that question, I'll tell them that I once saw someone being sick. And if I really want to give them a thrill, I'll tell them that I once saw someone being sick twice. (121)
May 31, 2020
4*
This was an incredible, phenomenal read. As a nursing student I can relate to this very much. I have been through crap and crawled out of it every single time because of the love for the job and helping people who are at their most vulnerable. I applaud the author for writing such a personal story and sharing it with so much passion, and such a grand mission. Mental health is something so important, and the more people being aware of how delicate of a balance it is, the better. I found it so valuable that mental health was a major topic in the story.
This book was easy to follow, yet so insightful in what ambulance personnel have to do and face every single day. I've seen television programs about the ambulance before, but after an episode or two it gets so redundant, because I know that's just the bits they're allowed to show. This is not the first book about the ambulance service I've read either, having read most there is to find in Dutch (I live in the Netherlands). This one though is by far my favorite so far. Other books I've read are either factual or consisting of just the cases being dealt with. The insight behind the scenes and what challenges are being faced really ties the story together and gives so much more than just some facts and details about what happened to the patients.
Literally everyone can benefit from reading this story, especially the people have little to no respect for first responders. This book gives an insight to what it is like, and paints a sometimes horrid picture that cannot be truly understood until experienced. That being said there are trigger warnings involved because of the vivid descriptions. Including suicide, domestic violence and drug and alcohol usage as well as details about violent behavior and accidents. If that is something that might trigger you and affect your mental health negatively, skip this one until you are in a better mental state.
Five stars, not only to the book, but also to the author, his message and to the other ambulance and medical personnel out there who set aside their own needs every day to tend to the people who need their help the most.
This was an incredible, phenomenal read. As a nursing student I can relate to this very much. I have been through crap and crawled out of it every single time because of the love for the job and helping people who are at their most vulnerable. I applaud the author for writing such a personal story and sharing it with so much passion, and such a grand mission. Mental health is something so important, and the more people being aware of how delicate of a balance it is, the better. I found it so valuable that mental health was a major topic in the story.
This book was easy to follow, yet so insightful in what ambulance personnel have to do and face every single day. I've seen television programs about the ambulance before, but after an episode or two it gets so redundant, because I know that's just the bits they're allowed to show. This is not the first book about the ambulance service I've read either, having read most there is to find in Dutch (I live in the Netherlands). This one though is by far my favorite so far. Other books I've read are either factual or consisting of just the cases being dealt with. The insight behind the scenes and what challenges are being faced really ties the story together and gives so much more than just some facts and details about what happened to the patients.
Literally everyone can benefit from reading this story, especially the people have little to no respect for first responders. This book gives an insight to what it is like, and paints a sometimes horrid picture that cannot be truly understood until experienced. That being said there are trigger warnings involved because of the vivid descriptions. Including suicide, domestic violence and drug and alcohol usage as well as details about violent behavior and accidents. If that is something that might trigger you and affect your mental health negatively, skip this one until you are in a better mental state.
Five stars, not only to the book, but also to the author, his message and to the other ambulance and medical personnel out there who set aside their own needs every day to tend to the people who need their help the most.
February 3, 2020
Great message but a little all over the place
I have the greatest respect for paramedics, they saved my mum's life more times than I can remember. The stories Dan recalled were harrowing, but I did get lost a couple of times jumping from one patient to the next in a matter of two lines. Although this is a good indication of the randomness of their jobs and never knowing what's next.
Having read 'This is going to hurt' by Adam Kay I very much enjoyed the diary format as it gave the book flow which gridlocked for me in places. That being said I completely agree with the cause Dan is working towards and the things he has witnessed are too horrific to comprehend.
I have the greatest respect for paramedics, they saved my mum's life more times than I can remember. The stories Dan recalled were harrowing, but I did get lost a couple of times jumping from one patient to the next in a matter of two lines. Although this is a good indication of the randomness of their jobs and never knowing what's next.
Having read 'This is going to hurt' by Adam Kay I very much enjoyed the diary format as it gave the book flow which gridlocked for me in places. That being said I completely agree with the cause Dan is working towards and the things he has witnessed are too horrific to comprehend.
February 28, 2020
Absolute amazing read. The book goes to show you dont realise the traumatic incidents an ambulance worker will go to and the effect it has on them. Really good insight into a profession I've always been interested in.
August 16, 2022
I found a copy of this book on a wall on my walk home from work , my stepdad is ex-ambulance service and has always shared some hilarious stories of his shifts (he too attended a man who ‘fell’ into a Henry hoover and couldn’t get out because his Prince Albert piercing was risking a nasty tear)
This book felt very familiar to me, similar stories and gallows humor that I’d grown up hearing but it’s also given me prospective on the amazing job these people do without a proper amount of mental support.
Iv listened to many of my stepdads stories but I don’t think I ever really quite grasped how much that man was putting up with and how immensely draining his work had been. When I was a self absorbed teenager it’s fair to say we didn’t get on and I wrote him off as a grumpy git who always had a headache and never let me have any fun or play my piano (something I usually wanted to do jsut to piss him off after a Night Shift)
As an adult my perspective has definitely changed and while he can definitely still be a grumpy git, his perpetual headaches have eased off a bit since putting down the uniform, and I see how overworked and undervalued (and underplayed) he really was.
This book made me think for every hilariously awkward story he has he also has many less told stories about being chinned by drunk lads or attending the scenes of suicide jumpers,that are unfortunately all to common in our area.
This book does a wonderful job of brining attention to just how hardworking our emergency, services are, and I think now more then ever people need to understand just how far stretched these services are becoming.
These people are amazingly resilient and need more support then ever to stay that way as day by day they become more understaffed and restricted by budget cuts and other bullshit that puts their vital work at risk
This book felt very familiar to me, similar stories and gallows humor that I’d grown up hearing but it’s also given me prospective on the amazing job these people do without a proper amount of mental support.
Iv listened to many of my stepdads stories but I don’t think I ever really quite grasped how much that man was putting up with and how immensely draining his work had been. When I was a self absorbed teenager it’s fair to say we didn’t get on and I wrote him off as a grumpy git who always had a headache and never let me have any fun or play my piano (something I usually wanted to do jsut to piss him off after a Night Shift)
As an adult my perspective has definitely changed and while he can definitely still be a grumpy git, his perpetual headaches have eased off a bit since putting down the uniform, and I see how overworked and undervalued (and underplayed) he really was.
This book made me think for every hilariously awkward story he has he also has many less told stories about being chinned by drunk lads or attending the scenes of suicide jumpers,that are unfortunately all to common in our area.
This book does a wonderful job of brining attention to just how hardworking our emergency, services are, and I think now more then ever people need to understand just how far stretched these services are becoming.
These people are amazingly resilient and need more support then ever to stay that way as day by day they become more understaffed and restricted by budget cuts and other bullshit that puts their vital work at risk
January 19, 2021
Review in a sentence:
A fascinating insight into the author's world working for the Ambulance service where he discusses the highs and lows of the job, and his mental health campaign to help his fellow colleagues in what is a very tough but rewarding career.
A fascinating insight into the author's world working for the Ambulance service where he discusses the highs and lows of the job, and his mental health campaign to help his fellow colleagues in what is a very tough but rewarding career.
May 19, 2024
So grateful for the NHS!
August 13, 2025
Easy to read, like having a conversation with a friend, or listening to a podcast. Exciting and shocking true stories of calls he's been to. Weaved in narrative about his own mental health and that of other ambulance workers without it being too heavy, but really made you think and feel grateful.
May 17, 2020
Wow
This book is a great insight into the highs and lows of an ambulance worker. It is very obvious that there needs to be more support for these superheroes as they can't suffer in silence. Everyone should read this book to understand the pressures of paramedics technician, doctor, nurses and everyone else in the NHS. We need to take a leaf out of America's book in terms of supporting the mental health of our essential workers.
This book is a great insight into the highs and lows of an ambulance worker. It is very obvious that there needs to be more support for these superheroes as they can't suffer in silence. Everyone should read this book to understand the pressures of paramedics technician, doctor, nurses and everyone else in the NHS. We need to take a leaf out of America's book in terms of supporting the mental health of our essential workers.
February 9, 2020
Amazing book for anyone who’s thinking of joining the service. Dan is doing excellent work regarding mental health in the workplace and not only in the ambulance service but every place of work. Keep raising awareness.
February 16, 2020
Great and thought provoking
This book highlights the ups and dis s of northern ambulance employee and how he made a difference to many in the traumatic scenarios they find themselves in. Amag book
This book highlights the ups and dis s of northern ambulance employee and how he made a difference to many in the traumatic scenarios they find themselves in. Amag book
February 23, 2020
So accurate. Everyone should read it. Mental health is so important but it continues to be an area that NHS bosses and parliament overlook. The NHS cannot continue to care for patients if it does not look after its staff first.
September 28, 2020
Whether a patient lives in a house whose floors stick to my feet or whose carpet is 6 inches deep, they deserve the same care and they get the same care. Accidents and illness don't discriminate, so neither do we.
It's clear from the outset of this book that Dan Farnworth cares deeply about his job, his patients, his role in society, and his colleagues; he's devoted time and energy to campaigning for better mental health care and recognition for the emergency services.
Among the plethora of medical memoirs I've read over the past year or two, I don't think I've read any by an ambulance worker (or a pharmacist, for that matter...). So this was a valuable insight into the work that paramedics and technicians do on the 'front line' (forgive me, I've come to despise military terminology in relation to healthcare in 2020).
The book lays out some of the themes of being an ambulance worker - communication, stress, equal treatment, child cases, trauma, family life, colleagues.
Despite the chapters having over-arching themes, it felt as though there was no clear direction for 70% of the book. In fact, even within chapters, I sometimes struggled to see the wood for the trees: cases were distracting, the narrative was jumbled, and it took a while to get to the point. Then the final section was entirely devoted to mental health, which was slightly jarring (albeit crucially important, don't get me wrong).
And whilst determinedly reiterating that he wasn't complaining... the tone in which some of it was written sometimes veered towards a whine. At times I just didn't like the narrator (sorry).
But, on a more positive note, one thing which is undervalued in the medical profession (be it by patients, hiring staff, doctors, whoever) is that communication is absolutely fundamental:
There's no real good way of delivering bad news, but there are better ways than others. Ambulance people can't administer sedative drugs, so we use words as sedatives instead.
Dan is almost certainly a wonderful verbal communicator. This book was written with a ghost writer, which perhaps impacted the final message - it wasn't as strong or as compelling as I'd hoped, but was still eye-opening.
A solid 3.5 stars, unfortunately rounded down to 3 due to lacking in execution. I recommend it, but mostly as a supplement to other medical memoirs for a ~rounded view~ of the UK's healthcare system.
February 27, 2021
Time taken to read - 2 days
Pages - 304
Publisher - Simon and Schuster
Source - Bought
Blurb from Goodreads
Dan Farnworth brings vividly to life his astonishing experiences as a medic working on the frontline of the UK Ambulance Service. When the 999 call goes out, he has little idea what he will find - and how he will cope with the challenges he faces when he gets there.
Having worked in the emergency services for more than fifteen years, Dan Farnworth has seen it all. There was the time he was called to take away a dead body - only for the 'corpse' to jolt back into life and demand to know what he was doing in her house. Earlier in his career, he unwittingly disturbed a crime scene as he shared the sad news of the victim's death with her son. Along with the 18,000 other paramedics in the UK who serve us day and night, Dan constantly finds himself pushed into extraordinary circumstances where he not only has to deal with those he has been sent to help, but also their worried families and friends - and even with irate drivers who object to his ambulance getting in their way as he desperately works to save someone's life.
My Review
I always think Joe Public should read these kind of true stories type books, have a bit of appreciation for the service and what the workers go through. This is Dan's story or rather stories, a paramedic who takes us through his career from starting out, during, to present day.
Emotive, shocking, horrific, sad. Farnworth takes us on a few of the callouts he has attended, some heartbreaking and how it impacted on him. How the job takes a toll on his personal life, his mental health and what he did as a result of that.
I would say this book has a more personal look, the actual affects on Farnworth himself, his personal life and a fair bit about him. Some of these books focus purely on the job and things they encounter, this has a bit more laid bare approach and a lot about the author himself. 4/5 for me this time, I do like reading true stories about other professionals, makes you appreciative to the services out there and the people who keep them going.
Pages - 304
Publisher - Simon and Schuster
Source - Bought
Blurb from Goodreads
Dan Farnworth brings vividly to life his astonishing experiences as a medic working on the frontline of the UK Ambulance Service. When the 999 call goes out, he has little idea what he will find - and how he will cope with the challenges he faces when he gets there.
Having worked in the emergency services for more than fifteen years, Dan Farnworth has seen it all. There was the time he was called to take away a dead body - only for the 'corpse' to jolt back into life and demand to know what he was doing in her house. Earlier in his career, he unwittingly disturbed a crime scene as he shared the sad news of the victim's death with her son. Along with the 18,000 other paramedics in the UK who serve us day and night, Dan constantly finds himself pushed into extraordinary circumstances where he not only has to deal with those he has been sent to help, but also their worried families and friends - and even with irate drivers who object to his ambulance getting in their way as he desperately works to save someone's life.
My Review
I always think Joe Public should read these kind of true stories type books, have a bit of appreciation for the service and what the workers go through. This is Dan's story or rather stories, a paramedic who takes us through his career from starting out, during, to present day.
Emotive, shocking, horrific, sad. Farnworth takes us on a few of the callouts he has attended, some heartbreaking and how it impacted on him. How the job takes a toll on his personal life, his mental health and what he did as a result of that.
I would say this book has a more personal look, the actual affects on Farnworth himself, his personal life and a fair bit about him. Some of these books focus purely on the job and things they encounter, this has a bit more laid bare approach and a lot about the author himself. 4/5 for me this time, I do like reading true stories about other professionals, makes you appreciative to the services out there and the people who keep them going.
May 19, 2022
I am coming to the end of my first year on the road as a frontline ambulance clinician. Reading this was very therapeutic, because people outside the job don't really understand what it's like so you can't really talk to them about it. It was nice to recognise my world in his. I was also surprised by the focus on mental health toward the end, although it makes sense and is maybe why reading it felt so therapeutic.
I sort of brushed off most of my hard jobs, but putting them next to the stories in this book make me realise how gruesome and tragic many of them were. Especially working as a porter 2020/21, taking away the covid dead.
It made me realise how many crazy and difficult things I've faced since I started working in healthcare, and reflect on the impact it made on me. I quite often have nightmares now, I love the job and don't want to do anything else, but this book has shown me the need ambulance workers have to look after themselves as well as their patients.
I sort of brushed off most of my hard jobs, but putting them next to the stories in this book make me realise how gruesome and tragic many of them were. Especially working as a porter 2020/21, taking away the covid dead.
It made me realise how many crazy and difficult things I've faced since I started working in healthcare, and reflect on the impact it made on me. I quite often have nightmares now, I love the job and don't want to do anything else, but this book has shown me the need ambulance workers have to look after themselves as well as their patients.
June 6, 2022
A fascinating book which had enough of the “gory” stuff to engage the reader while maintaining respect and keeping it away from just a shock factor rollercoaster.
I had no idea the support for ambulance workers was so bad if I ever see a campaign to support or donation box I shall get involved for sure.
I needed an ambulance for the first time ever in January 2022 and the took 4 hours to get to me. I had fallen down my stairs top to bottom and dislocated my shoulder and was in agony. When they finally arrived they were amazing, kind and gentle.
If less people called on them for spurious reasons or minor ailments maybe they could attend the genuinely injured more quickly.
This book made me realise how little we think of the ambulance service they are the poor forgotten sibling of doctors and nurses.
I had no idea the support for ambulance workers was so bad if I ever see a campaign to support or donation box I shall get involved for sure.
I needed an ambulance for the first time ever in January 2022 and the took 4 hours to get to me. I had fallen down my stairs top to bottom and dislocated my shoulder and was in agony. When they finally arrived they were amazing, kind and gentle.
If less people called on them for spurious reasons or minor ailments maybe they could attend the genuinely injured more quickly.
This book made me realise how little we think of the ambulance service they are the poor forgotten sibling of doctors and nurses.
November 5, 2021
A solidly written, ghostwritten memoir of life on the front line from an ambulance driver working in the northwest of England. 999 is as engrossing, horrifying, moving and occasionally heartbreaking as you'd expect given the author's profession, and although non graphic - and deliberately shying away from graphic descriptions at times and telling the reader so - it is still very much a warts and all portrayal. I particularly liked the way the author himself undergoes a character arc of sorts, ending up suffering mentally due to all the things he's witnessed. Effortlessly readable too, which is always a bonus.
March 16, 2024
Hiya
This book was very interesting to read. As a carer of people myself I gained PTSD from a horrific experience that I had working in care and the lack of support from managers, offerings of councilling were so poor. Even tho Dan works for the ambulance service it’s suprising how poorly people in active public roles are treated after such horrific incidents
You don’t expect to go to work be in an incident that will affect you for the rest of your life
This book brings awareness and even if it helps one employer help their staff then that’s fantastic
Thank you Dan for a brilliant book
Well worth a read x
This book was very interesting to read. As a carer of people myself I gained PTSD from a horrific experience that I had working in care and the lack of support from managers, offerings of councilling were so poor. Even tho Dan works for the ambulance service it’s suprising how poorly people in active public roles are treated after such horrific incidents
You don’t expect to go to work be in an incident that will affect you for the rest of your life
This book brings awareness and even if it helps one employer help their staff then that’s fantastic
Thank you Dan for a brilliant book
Well worth a read x
March 11, 2021
Illuminating insight into what it is like to work in the ambulance service because most people will never even come close to experiencing even a fraction of the possible trauma they might face at work, and to make matters worse, most people take these emergency services for granted until the moment they need its assistance and they don't bear in mind that the ambulance crew has to work in unfamiliar environments and provide crucial basic medical support without the comfort of the basic infrastructure that's available in a hospital.
August 16, 2023
I like these sort of books which give an insight into jobs that are key to society but hard for outsiders to really fully understand what they are like to work in on a day-to-day basis. This book is a good example of these kinds of memoirs, there's a nice mix of funny annecdotes, broader social commentary and personal history of the author. The focus on the impact on the mental health of ambulance staff was eye opening and highlighted how people in these jobs need protecting and supporting, which is the least we can do, after all they do to keep us safe.
March 21, 2021
A very easy and enjoyable listen for the most part. However, there are dark parts to this memoir (naturally) and I think the way Farnworth introduced these moments with growing intensity, insidiously, really built well to when he introduced his PTSD and symbolised how it hovered in the back of his mind.
I would have liked Farnworth to have narrated this himself as it is HIS memoir, but Hadfield did an excellent job.
I would have liked Farnworth to have narrated this himself as it is HIS memoir, but Hadfield did an excellent job.
May 9, 2021
This was a genre I recently have started to read as I am v interested in the work of paramedics and the NHS. It was a well written account by a serving paramedic and although I greatly admire the work being done to secure mental health support for frontline workers in the ambulance service parts of the book became repetitive towards the end. I am glad I have read it however and applaud the work all paramedics do.
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