Cath Mok clearly recalls her partner Helen’s excitement and optimism as she started her new career as a paramedic.
“She was bright eyed and bushy tailed about it. Being a paramedic I think gave her lots of opportunities to use the good things about her personality,” she told The Feed.
But after a number of years in the job, Helen’s ability to cope with the increasing demands were starting to drain.
“There were a few accidents that she went to that she found very disturbing. Things like picking up body parts off the road, scraping people back together,” Cath said.
“The thing that really troubled Helen with her work environment, towards the end certainly, was that she could never get home on time.”
Despite Helen’s commitment to her profession, the toll on her family only became worse. Missed social gatherings and family occasions were the norm. By mid 2013, Helen was a shadow of her former self.
Sadly, Helen’s story is becoming less of an isolated incident. According to data published by The Age, the suicide rate among Victorian paramedics is about 20 times higher than the general population.
Cath says she watched as her partner Helen turned into a shadow of herself (SBS)
Nicole Robertson had only been in the job for three years when she started feeling that perhaps she wasn’t quite coping.
“I’d say that things were starting to affect me long before I noticed that things were starting to affect me,” she said.
“I first noticed when I realised that I had a bunch of suicide plans for when I got old. It’s something that I’ve often talked to other paramedics about.”
While crying before a shift had become familiar to Nicole, when she found herself unable to stop, it became painfully clear that she was in the midst of a breakdown.
“I thought, well I probably shouldn’t go in, I should probably go back inside and call someone.”
Tragically, the effects of suicide and mental illness aren’t limited to the sufferer. Friends, families, and colleagues all feel the rippling impacts.
After eleven years in the service, Dave Tull has seen the kind of situations that would send many of us into shock. But for Dave, none of the jobs he’s attended come close to the kind of pain he feels at losing so many of his colleagues.
“Last year I lost two people that I know. Over the past 6 to 7 years, I think it’s about 8 to 10, something like that,” he said.
SBS2’s The Feed contacted Ambulance Victoria for comment. Tony Walker, General Manager Regional Services, told the program via a statement:
Dave Tull says over the past six or seven years he's lost about 'eight to ten' colleagues to suicide (SBS)
“Ambulance Victoria recognises the challenging environment that our paramedics operate in and take the health of our staff very seriously.”
“We have also commenced a research project to explore potential roster options that meet our service delivery while allowing for a reduction in shift length.”
“Ambulance Victoria understands the risk of fatigue in the challenging environment that emergency services operate in.”
Read the full statement below
While he acknowledges the severe emotional and physical toll, Dave is quick to point to his strong passion for his work.
“I keep doing the job because, when I’m at the hospital bed, and grandma’s there, and she puts her hand up and shakes your hand and says ‘thank-you very much, I don’t know what we’d do without you’. You get that a couple of times a week and you realise you’re in the right job.”
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