So it appears I stopped writing after I qualified as a CFR with SCAS and for that I am sorry. It has been a busy few months of a few buddy shifts and going it alone.

But first, and update on HART. I continue to be a volunteer driver for them, but at this time of year there are fewer animals out and about, fewer people to spot the injured ones, and thus the calls drop off. I expect them to pick up again in the spring where they will once again be run off their feet.

Being a CFR has been one if the single enjoyable things I have ever done. I am so proud to be privileged enough to place this uniform on, and attend jobs to help the community I live in.

After qualifying I did a few shifts with local co-ordinators to make sure I was comfortable with what was expected of me, from the paperwork, using the phone, taking the obs, interaction with crews, patients and their relatives.

In short, there is so much to remember, and whilst I haven’t had a cardiac arrest, and a lot of the jobs I have felt utterly inadequate in what help I am able to provide, it is still all learning and I look for opportunities to go on shift whenever I can, much to the annoyance of my wife I suspect.

I have attended jobs from a 1 year old with a bug, to patients who really should’ve gone to a pharmacy. From a woman with heart failure, to an elderly woman, with dementia, lost and confused wondering around in public. The variety is so broad both in presenting complaint and situation, no 2 jobs are remotely similar other than I am there.

Whilst my expectations of a job every hour were unrealistic (I’ve gone 12 hour shift and received nothing!) my drive for doing it isn’t diminished at all. I still love more than anything else I have ever done.

I sit here, on shift, in my car, writing this to show that anyone can give back to their community. What I do may involve a uniform, and slightly higher profile than, say someone volunteering at a foodbank. But the fact is that I am no more important than the next volunteer, no more vital than the litter pickers on their daily walk.

What ever your passion, volunteer. It’s amazing