About Us

Sarah is one of our Graduate Interns for 2019 and has been working full time on red shift for 10 months now.

She says being part of dynamic studies and new ways of practice that are changing the face of pre-hospital care – including Telestroke ambulances, PATCH study and oxygenation in Cardiac Chest Pain patients – has been something she’s enjoyed a lot.

“When I first decided to join the Wellington free team I wanted opportunities to extend and develop my knowledge out in a practical setting. I hoped to gain confidence and ‘learn the ropes’ from a real world perspective,” Sarah says.

Sarah has found having the support of a preceptor quite valuable.

“It’s always helpful having someone to bounce ideas off and to give different perspectives on problems you may encounter. Being able to have six months at a time with your preceptor means you are able to build a cohesive working relationship which ultimately benefits our patients.

“By having time to learn each other’s way of doing things you can also start to anticipate each other’s next move which allows a job to run smoothly.

“Both of my preceptors have been very experienced in their positions and have taught me many little ‘tricks of the trade’ along the way,” Sarah says.

Paramedic Mark Osborne is Sarah’s current preceptor. He has been involved with the Tawa Fire Service for a number of years and has provided Sarah with invaluable learning and discussion from a fire prospective; not to mention how her actions can assist when working alongside the fire service.

He is also a member of the rescue squad, and Sarah was recently able to accompany him on a rescue job helping her understand alternative patient extrication methods.

“The job required us, along with other rescue paramedics to walk into the bush to help someone who had injured their leg. We used a piece of equipment called the wheel [a stretcher attached to an off-road tyre] to get the patient out. It was the first time I had seen this piece of equipment used so it was a good learning opportunity…we were also lucky enough to have a lovely scenic walk in the bush,” Sarah says.

Sarah explains there is no such thing as a “normal” day.

“Some days we might have some time in the morning to sit down and have a cup of coffee and others we might be straight out the door and then non-stop all day. One minute we could be attending a cardiac arrest and the next helping someone up off the floor and making them a cup of tea.

“Every patient we attend is different which definitely keeps me on my toes but is also what I enjoy about the job.”

As part of Sarah’s position at Wellington Free, she had to complete a Bachelor of Health Science (Paramedicine) at Whitireia.

Before this, she completed a Bachelor of Commerce, and majored in finance but later decided that life in an office was not for her.

Despite the change of direction, Sarah loves what she gets to do.