Episode 11 First Time on the Front Line

Britain's next generation of Emergency Service recruits,

chosen from a pool of thousands.

Rookies like Ben who's always longed to be a paramedic.

His hopes are now a reality.

Not many 20-year-old people can say that they

drive around in an ambulance

and attend critically ill patients.

And volunteer police special Sarah, slowing finding her feet

on active duty with regular officers.

It's exciting, basically - you go into a job

and you've no idea what to expect.

It's quite a buzz, your heart's going.

Brendan's reason for swapping his white collar job

for a career in firefighting couldn't be more clear-cut.

To make a positive impact

on someone's life and to save them from

a life-threatening situation.

They've survived months of intensive training.

-Come on, let's move!

-Get back!

-I've made contact.

They've been tested to their limits.

-Spray, spray!

-It's burning.

Stop panicking - don't worry.

All to realise their dream careers.

It's doing now what I've always wanted to do,

which is a really good feeling.

Join them for their first time on the front line.

In today's programme: On patrol...

Someone's in trouble, basically.

..and under attack.

Get off me!

Police special Sarah puts her own safety on the line

when a colleague's pinned to the ground.

No time to waste.

Ben rushes to a patient whose heart hits 160 beats a minute.

-You've got cold hands.

-You know what they say - cold hands, warm heart.

And crashed...

-Brendan, just talk to the casualty.

-Yeah.

..and trapped. The driver whose life depends on fire recruit Brendan.

Cut it.

In Cheshire, Sarah Johnson's new career as a police special is well under way.

On her first shift, she tracked down an expensive stolen bicycle

and joined a high-speed response to a 999 call about a domestic row.

I'm glad I'm not driving.

But bigger challenges are still to come.

Sarah's 46 and a mum of three.

She became a police special out of a sense of public duty.

Going out and helping people,

doing things that are just proactive for the community, it's really good.

Specials give their time for free,

four hours a week helping keep their neighbourhoods safe.

Time well spent, according to Sarah.

You really can feel that you've achieved something.

You can be proud of yourself for that.

That's how I feel.

To qualify, Sarah had to complete an intensive 20-day training course.

-Go!

-Get back!

Specials have the same powers as regular officers and they run

the same risks, so personal safety instruction is a priority.

Some of them have never been involved in any conflict situations

before, so obviously we need to make sure they have

the necessary skills for when they go out there.

Last year, nearly 20,000 police officers

were assaulted on duty.

Somebody's coming in to try and kick you in the face,

try to get on top of you.

Get back, get back, get back.

Make sure you get into that position and get up.

This training was outside Sarah's comfort zone, but she soon

mastered the techniques she'd need to defend herself on duty.

Get back!

You'd want to be practising doing it

if you're going to have to do it on the street.

You need to know what you're doing.

Down, down, down.

Cross your legs.

Five weeks on and with her training now done,

Sarah prepares to go out on shift.

She's been chosen for duty at a gay pride event in Chester.

Although such events are not noted for trouble,

they can attract large crowds, with access to alcohol.

A combustible mix.

It's an exciting day, but it's kind of, I don't know,

because I've never done this sort of thing before.

With the event just an hour away,

Sarah joins her colleagues for a briefing.

Our intention today is quite straightforward - to provide

a visible policing presence

during this event to ensure the safety of those attending,

and perhaps more importantly,

deal with any alcohol-related disorder.

Specials are supervised by constable tutors

throughout their 18-month probation period.

Sarah's mentor is also a special,

although Heather Frendt does have five years' experience.

We are expecting 2,000 people.

It's been well-publicised,

so we might get groups of teenagers coming in as well,

so we will need to be aware of them, cos they can be a bit of a handful.

This is new territory for the police in Chester.

It's the city's first-ever gay pride event.

These events are usually good-natured,

and at first this one is exactly that.

A few cuddles and a few photographs now.

I think that's part of it, though.

You know people are going to have a few drinks,

people do want to have their photograph taken.

It's fine, it's fine, you know, we can cope with that.

But soon, the telltale signs of underage drinking start to appear.

Fella - show me what you've just put in your pocket, please.

-How old are you?

-16.

Cheers. You need to wake up a bit earlier to catch me out.

Nearby, another underage drinker has collapsed and needs help fast.

She's in and out of consciousness.

Because street drinking restrictions have been relaxed today,

youngsters unconnected with the event

are flooding into the city centre.

The St John's Ambulance are basically looking after her.

She's in and out of consciousness.

She's probably just been drinking all afternoon.

The mood of the event is starting to change.

We've just got to keep an eye on them, really,

and just make sure it goes off smoothly.

It looks like the rookie special could be in for a long day.

Ambulance service recruit Ben Pallante

is a month into his new job.

So far he's tended to a cyclist hit by a car

and a man who almost severed his hand with a chain saw.

Now, despite his own limited experience,

he's been asked to supervise a trainee for the first time.

Ben's always wanted to be a paramedic.

As a youngster, he volunteered for St John Ambulance, then studied

for a degree in Paramedic Science at university.

His graduation was a proud moment,

and he made some lasting friendships along the way.

Warwick!

At 20, Ben knows he has much to learn in a job

where lives are often on the line.

It's a massive responsibility for someone of my age.

That's one of the exciting things I'm actually looking forward to,

saying that's what I do for a job.

Four weeks after starting,

Ben's about to experience another career first.

He's impressed his superiors so much, they've asked him

to supervise new trainee, Jat Malhi.

The apprentice is on his way to becoming a master.

It's quite scary, really. Six months back,

I was in that position where I was looking up to people

and asking for their advice and their help and their support,

so obviously now, sort of role reversal, really.

Still training at the moment,

learning all the skills and hopefully with my colleagues today

and crew mates I'll be picking up a few more skills.

Ben and Jat head out in response to their first emergency call of the day.

A 32-year-old man is suffering from chest and stomach pains,

and displaying an even more worrying symptom.

On arrival, they find the patient, David, in agony.

Right, OK.

Chest pains could indicate a heart attack - in which case,

rapid treatment is essential. Ben connects David to a heart rate monitor to check further.

Right, I need you to keep nice and still for a second because

I'm going to do a quick trace of your heart, so relax - that's it.

It's good news - the tracing indicates David isn't having a heart attack.

He's still in severe pain, though. Ben's next task is to reduce it.

What we'll do is we'll give you a spray, OK?

The spray is designed to widen the vessels

and increase the blood supply in David's chest.

Now lift your tongue - that's it. Close your mouth, dissolve it.

See if that works.

If Ben's chosen the right treatment,

David's chest pains should ease almost immediately.

Has the pain got worse?

It's got a little bit better with that spray, yeah?

Despite this encouraging sign, David still can't stop vomiting.

What have you been doing over the last couple of days?

You haven't got any ulcers or anything?

-Any stomach ulcers?

-I don't think so.

Ben's diagnosis is inconclusive.

We'll get you down quickly.

David's illness needs identifying and treating as soon as possible.

I'm just going to pop a cannula into his arm so we can give him some paracetamol.

Right, let's pop this in your arm then, mate.

By giving the pain relief intravenously,

Ben hopes to reduce David's discomfort quickly.

How much blood did you bring up?

Not much, only like little spots.

Only a small amount, yeah? OK.

But even small amounts of blood in vomit may indicate

bleeding in the stomach or bowel.

If David does have internal bleeding his condition could worsen fast.

What's that pain like now? Can you describe it now?

They've reached A&E.

Following his training to the letter,

Ben hands over to the triage nurse.

He says he's been coughing up or vomiting up clots of blood.

David will now undergo tests to find the cause of his illness.

We did a full set of observations on everything

that we could have done,

so he'll be seen by the doctors and nurses in A&E

and they'll decide the best care for him.

Ben and Jat head off.

Their shift still has seven hours to go.

West Midlands Fire Service recently advertised for recruits

for the first time in three years.

More than 5,000 applied. Just 50 were successful.

One of them - former marketing manager Brendan Houston.

Brendan's first shifts have been quiet.

The only highlight - breaking down a door after smoke was reported

coming from a ground floor flat.

Hello, Fire Service!

But that's about to change.

Brendan's working life took a new turn in autumn 2013 when

he attended eight weeks of training to prepare him for active duty.

Come on, where's the effort?

Before that he worked in marketing,

but decided to give up a comfortable life and salary

for a job well-known for its risks.

To be able to make that positive impact

on someone's life,

whether it be that you do save them from a life-threatening situation

or an accident that they're in.

The course stretched the trainees to the limit

so the instructors could see who had the right stuff.

You will report to this man

so he can make sure that you are safe.

Applicants have no hiding place. They either passed or failed.

Let's get that casualty out! Come on! Dig in!

Learning how to extract casualties from car crashes was a priority.

Britain's firefighters attend over 32,000 road traffic collisions every year.

We're going to take it that there's a passenger in here

and that's why we're removing the roof.

Firefighters often have to use hydraulic machinery to reach crash victims.

But the kit is powerful and must be handled with care.

Brendan had to get to grips with heavy cutters

and powerful saws that can pierce metal in seconds.

If it starts shaking it's because the blade's jammed.

But on this part of the course Brendan was found wanting.

He chose the wrong part of the car to make his cut,

and his blade became stuck.

What we're going to do now is you're going to stand back and just rest for a minute.

If this was a real car crash,

a mistake like that could waste time and cost lives.

We're going to lift it up and take it forwards.

Right, we need to get it up, there's people in this car.

A sobering experience for the new recruit,

but hopefully a vital lesson learnt.

I can't deny that was hard work.

You have to put yourself

in a situation in real life and think,

"Well, if that was a real person..."

It's super tough.

Four weeks after Brendan completed his training,

the new recruit is on active duty and about to start a ten-hour shift.

First task, responding to a 999 call.

There's been a serious car crash -

Brendan's newly acquired skills are about to be tested for real.

-Brendan.

-Yeah.

OK, yeah.

Two vehicles have collided - one ending up on its side.

Its driver, Mohammed, is trapped.

Brendan rushes to get the hose.

The car and its driver could go up in flames at any moment.

Paramedics are on scene.

They fear Mohammed has serious spinal injuries.

He needs to be extracted quickly but safely.

We'll put some blocks under here now to stop any movement.

Yeah, that's the first priority.

The car needs to be stabilised.

It's in danger of rolling over, crushing the firefighters.

One person inside.

Watch commander Dave Alexander gives Brendan a crucial task.

Any movement of that car towards us,

shout up at the guys in there and tell them to stop,

-as loud as you can if it's moving.

-Yeah. OK.

The lives of the crew, paramedics and driver are in Brendan's hands.

There'll be a bit of a noise now, mate.

Just a few bangs.

Once the crew secure the car, they can cut Mohammed free.

Stabilisation's fine.

Crew commander James Brereton is Brendan's mentor.

He thinks it's time for the new recruit

to put his training into practice.

As soon as it's ready, all right,

we'll get you started making some cuts.

Brendan needs to make four clean cuts to remove the roof.

This time, there's no margin for error.

Cut it!

It's very fast when it's like this, it's not like training.

A seriously injured casualty is depending on Brendan,

and the risk of a fuel tank explosion remains.

Every second counts.

Cut it! Cut it!

Firefighters are encouraged to reassure casualties

while cutting them out.

-Brendan, just talk to the casualty, let him know, yeah?

-Yeah.

There'll be a bit of a noise now, mate.

Cut it!

Brendan's nearly finished, but he's struggling to make the final cut.

Yeah.

He acts on the advice instantly.

It's starting to cut in now.

Right - one, two, three.

Now Mohammed can be extracted from the wreckage,

and taken to hospital.

One, two, three - lift.

Brendan may have struggled with cutting gear at the academy,

but when it really mattered, he delivered.

It's my first RTC.

There's only so much training can prepare you for it

until you get into a real situation

and there's somebody actually hurt in the car

and you've got to make decisions and be quick enough and confident

that you're doing the right things to get them

freed as quick as possible.

He did really well. It's hard, the first time,

but he listened to what we wanted to be done

and sort of leapt on to the backs of everybody else that was here

and just sort of took a bit of advice.

I don't know whether I've made it as a firefighter,

but that definitely helped. I feel a little bit more confident.

There was a little bit running around in the beginning

thinking, "Oh, my God, where's that on the truck?" and,

"Where's this on the truck?" but I got there in the end.

Back at the gay pride event, police special Sarah and her mentor Heather

are monitoring an increasingly raucous crowd.

Pockets of trouble are starting to stretch the police.

Suddenly, a call comes in about a drunken youth

throwing furniture in a fast food restaurant.

Just stay there for me a second. Which one is it?

Over there.

That one - grab him.

Sarah stops the suspect before he escapes.

Just come with me, sir.

The manager confirms he's been abusive to staff

and other customers.

What do you want to happen,

because obviously we've got all this happening outside?

Do you just want him out?

Ah, well, that's all right, then, after you've wrecked the joint.

-You're going to leave this building and you're going to go straight home.

-Yeah.

If you don't go straight home, I'm going to lock you up.

Do you understand what I'm saying to you?

The teenager is removed,

but as soon as Sarah and Heather get outside, their radios vibrate.

A fellow officer needs urgent back-up.

We've just heard the alarm on the radio - someone's in trouble, basically.

Police radios are fitted with a distress button.

If held down for just over a second, it alerts all nearby colleagues.

-You don't have to say anything but it may harm your defence...

-Where are we going?

Fellow officers were struggling to handcuff a man,

but now have him under control.

In the confusion, Sarah loses Heather.

Suddenly, the crowd surges.

The man's again resisting arrest and Heather's clinging on to his legs.

Luckily, they soon have him under control.

But Sarah's struggling to master her radio.

And she needs to be totally up to speed.

More potential troublemakers

unconnected to the event are arriving.

You'd want to be facing that way.

This is the problem we're getting when we get large groups of youths.

A disorderly crowd is a test even for experienced officers.

Heather knows the challenge it presents to a rookie.

Any time you feel uncomfortable, you need to let me know, OK?

Right.

We all go through that fight or flight.

-If it gets a bit too much for you, you need to let me know.

-OK.

-All right, because I'm relying on you to back me up.

-OK.

All right. Wherever I go, I want you to go with me.

I will. I will, yeah.

Today's shift is proving to be an ordeal for Sarah,

and it's not over yet.

In Birmingham,

new paramedic Ben is four hours into his shift with trainee Jat.

They're responding to a 999 call from a pensioner in distress.

They arrive just after a rapid response paramedic.

Hello. How are you, all right?

This is Jennie. She's an 85-year-old female.

The fast responder has run some tests and it isn't good news.

The heart rate is anywhere between 134 and 180 now.

-OK.

-Slight bit of SVT.

SVT is the name given to an abnormally quick heart rate.

Jennie's is double what it should be.

For an 85-year-old, it could be life-threatening.

Obviously, we can't really sustain a heart rate of 140 for long.

She needs to be taken to a specialist cardiovascular unit right away.

What we'll do, because your heart rate

is quite fast at the moment,

we'll pop you up to hospital, all right?

But Jennie is frail and needs to be moved with care.

Her husband Harold is concerned.

There's nothing to worry about at the moment, all right?

Yes.

Let's have that.

Jennie may seem fine, but a heart rate so fast will put

a huge strain on her heart, with potentially fatal results.

The patient has got quite a high heart rate,

so we're trying to make sure that the patient's heart rate

stays as it was or tries to come down rather than increase.

Sometimes that can be the case when you're moving the patient around.

Ben's training told him to hope for the best but prepare for the worst.

I'm just going to pop a cannula into Jennie's arm and obviously

because her heart rate is quite fast at the moment, you know, we may be

able to give her something a little bit later on if anything happens.

He may only be a month into the job...

A sharp scratch, all right?

..but he's already thinking ahead like a veteran.

Just bring your arm around here and keep it nice and still. Right, then.

It's off to hospital.

Blue light.

Jennie's heart rate is now 160 beats per minute. It's getting worse.

What we are going to do, Jennie,

because your heart rate is quite fast at the moment,

we're going to let the hospital know that we're coming.

Can I pop an alert in, please?

I have an 85-year-old female with an SVT of about 160.

Yeah. We're about eight minutes away coming from Aldridge.

OK, so the doctors know that we're on our way, Jennie.

Ben tries to take Jennie's mind off the situation.

How long have you been married for, then?

64 years! Blimey!

OK, is that 50 years or is it 60?

-60.

-Oh, OK.

They've arrived at a hospital with a top cardio vascular unit.

Jennie will be in good hands.

Yeah, it was a good job.

It's a sign of Ben's growing maturity as a paramedic

that his employers entrust him with a trainee -

one who clearly holds him in high regard.

He's been very supportive and encouraging,

to be honest with you, and I've learned a few things from him as well, which is good.

Ben's first month as a paramedic couldn't have gone better.

I'm still finding my feet.

It's coming with time and every day something's different.

There's never one job or one patient that's the same.

I come to work and I don't know who I'm going to work with,

where I'm going to go during the day, or what I'm going to do.

It's a job I want to do now for the rest of my life.

Back at the gay pride event, rookie special Sarah

and her mentor Heather are under pressure.

Social media has spread the word that street drinking rules

have been relaxed and youths are streaming in from nearby towns.

The police are trying to restrict access to the town square, but they're clearly outnumbered.

You can't go any further, stay here.

Sorry, lads.

We can't go any further. How come?

There's not enough of us, Joe.

The police have just been told a large mob's on its way,

and the youths are looking for trouble.

-There's apparently a group coming up...

-Go and get yourself home.

..that they don't want coming up this way.

It's quite scary, heartbeat going, you know.

It's quite nerve-racking, you know, you've no idea of what's

going to happen, whether it's going to be like a mass riot

or a rush or what,

or whether it's just going to be a few people having a fight.

I'm just watching my colleagues.

They all seem to be congregating down here.

Orders have come through to form a police line.

Sarah rehearsed this tactic in training, but now it's for real.

All of you, this side. On you go.

These are my mates.

Trouble could erupt at any moment.

Just fill that gap.

Suddenly, a distress call comes over the radio.

Heather grabs a man resisting arrest.

She's pushed to the ground.

Get off me!

Sarah holds his legs to help bring him under control.

He continues to struggle, but she doesn't let go.

The man is contained and Heather is unharmed.

Sarah put her safety on the line for a colleague.

Individuals who just are kicking off at the moment,

and if they're basically attacking the police,

then everybody from the police just basically dives in and dives on them.

Nobody wants to be assaulted. Simple as that.

Following this violent incident, the tension eases.

The crowd begins to disperse and there's no more trouble.

The police have done their job, including rookie special Sarah.

I'm very proud of her. She's done really well.

Considering she's only been in the job five weeks, she's held her own today.

It's been very tense at a lot of times

and she's managed to stay there with us.

That's all we can ask. The rest, she'll learn.

Within just a few short hours,

Sarah went from unsure observer to brave comrade.

She came of age as a police officer.

There is an element of pride involved. Your own personal pride in wearing the uniform

and basically representing Cheshire Police.

People see you as a police officer -

they don't see you as a special constable.

You are valued and you feel valued basically, you know.

I felt that all the way through.

David spent four days in hospital

after being diagnosed with pancreatitis and water on the lung.

He's now home and recovering well.

Mohammed, the driver Brendan cut free,

is now out of hospital after being treated for back injuries.

He's on the road to recovery.

Jennie received treatment in hospital for her racing heartbeat before being discharged.

The man who resisted arrest at Chester Gay Pride

was charged with threatening behaviour.

He pleaded guilty and received 150 hours' community service.

And the man Sarah helped arrest was given a formal police caution

under section 5 of the Public Order Act.

Next time:

Roadside rescue.

Leanne's called on to extract a female driver in trouble.

Ready, brace, move.

Busted by Beccy.

The necessity for your arrest is just

so we can prevent any loss or damage to any of the evidence.

Is the drug suspect a dealer as well as a user?

We've found a large bag of cannabis bush.

And an agonising wait for an ambulance.

-Ow!

-OK, Neil.

Julie needs expert help for a man with a suspected broken neck.

The patient's in severe pain.

Ready, steady, roll.

Ow!