Meet our People: Mat Westhorpe

As we at HUC celebrate Allied Health Professions’ (AHP) Day, it fills me with pride to be part of a workforce that has proven itself to be an invaluable asset for healthcare.

Once upon a time, I think paramedics were the ugly duckling of the medical ecosystem. Even after decades of trying to shrug off the reductive ‘ambulance driver’ label and evolving into a multi-faceted prehospital clinical generalist, in my opinion many paramedics found themselves in an evolutionary rut.

The different situations ambulance professionals needed to master were often not immediately obvious from the outside. They adapted to their environment as the manifold challenges of pre-hospital emergency care demanded. The ‘essential service’ provided by ambulance responders needed the reflexes of a professional pursuit driver, the compassion of a counsellor, the negotiation expertise of a diplomat, the clinical skills of a hospital crash team, and the stamina and digestive fortitude of a mountain goat (desperate 3am searches for depleted hospital vending machines are real!)

However, for me, the challenge of 12-hours shifts responding to 999 calls were a relentless trial by fire and I have seen experience gleaned ‘out on the road’ tempering bright-eyed ‘baby paramedics’ into weathered veterans with aching backs and nowhere to go.

Thankfully, in recent years the paramedic role has branched and blossomed and more opportunities have been created for that valuable workforce full of clinical experience and well-honed soft skills. The advent of Paramedic Science degrees, professional recognition, and skillset specialisation has seen a diaspora of paramedics find their way into a variety of roles across emergency and unscheduled care and beyond.

Indeed, paramedics have found a second home in primary care, both as clinical advisors and consultation clinicians in the hear-and-treat environments of 111 and unscheduled care. Their utility translates well into healthcare management roles too, with dynamic problem-solving under pressure and compassionate leadership essential components that most paramedic veterans can tap into.

At HUC, these qualities are welcomed and encouraged. Our multidisciplinary teams boast a wealth of experienced healthcare professionals, with paramedics working side-by-side with nurses, pharmacists and GPs. We work together in support of each other and our non-clinical colleagues, collectively providing our patients with clinical expertise founded in compassionate care.

Seeing paramedic colleagues thrive after life on the front line is immensely rewarding and I am proud to be part of an organisation that offers those opportunities. Together with our AHP colleagues and the wider NHS family, we continue to be able to provide clinical and pastoral support for our patients and each other in the ever-changing demands of modern healthcare.

Happy AHP day to all of you. Take care and give some back.