Welcome to England

I was interrupted from deciding between a kitkat or a bag of crispies at the petrol station by the sound of our radio... "emergency call in your car for you".

All thoughts of snacks were forgotten as we bundled back into the carbulance.

"Patient shot with pellet gun"

Can't be too bad can it? Oh well, it says red call.... off we go.

About 6.5 minutes later we turn into the road.

2 police cars, 3 police vans, numerous teenagers locked in the back of one. All seems a bit much for what we presumed was a drunken accident with a pellet gun. No time to ask right now, we just make our way to the patient.

The patient is sitting on the side of the road. He doesn't speak more than a few words of English, nor do his friends. He's clearly distressed, in pain and struggling for breath. His friend is on the phone to someone from home howling inconsolably the shock and panic in his eyes.

They were playing a game of cards after work. They're only in England for a few days. Shame their overriding memory of English people will be the chavs who hid in the bushes with an air rifle trying to shoot them in the heads, succeeding in shooting one of them in the right hand side of his chest.

We took one look at the patient. He had a big pellet wound to the right of his sternal edge at around nipple height. No exit wound. You could feel the surgical emphysema, but otherwise, apart from breathless, the patient seemed stable.

We couldn't very well tie him to the roof of our car and take him into the hospital so we called for a truck. The nearest one was 20 mins away on lights. Bugger. Even with him being stable now we didn't fancy sitting there for 20 minutes with a pellet rattling around somewhere in his lung, next to his heart.

We had an idea. We were only 3 minutes away from a hospital and there was a pretty police van. That would do!

After a little sweet talking the police let us pile in to the van. I felt sorry for them, they looked nothing but panicked as we fiddled with O2 canisters and cut the patient free of his clothes. I think they were glad to be rid of us after the 3 minutes.

When we got to hospital and handed over the patient in one piece I realised something. My curse of the observer had gone and instead I'd got the drama I'd be hoping for. Should be careful what I wish for.

Lily xXx