“My husband and I were going to catch the train to London and I was all dressed up in my finery. We were half way across the rail crossing when the warning started that a train was coming. I tried to go quicker but I fell, and knocked myself unconscious.
“The next thing I know there were two men saying ‘Get to the other side of the barrier!’ and they were carrying me one under each arm.
“I couldn’t stand up. I’d damaged myself badly - my ribs were broken, and my face was bleeding. I’d broken my glasses, bitten through my lip, damaged my knee - which still is a bit naughty.
“I was taken to hospital in an ambulance and every single member of staff was wonderful with both me and my husband. They were very, very busy but they genuinely made time for me. I couldn’t believe they were caring about me - I felt so silly and embarrassed that I’d fallen. Anyway they let me go home, which I was so pleased about.
"I wanted the staff to know what a great job they did"
“The ambulance crew that took me home were lovely. I’d started to feel upset and sad in the ambulance and they were friendly and homely and made me feel much better. They brought me all the way into the house and chatted for a while. It was like having grandchildren talk to you. It’s the caring that mattered and that you don’t see a lot of today.
“When I felt better I really wanted to let the staff know what a great job they did. I think it’s important because they are regarded so much as just part of society and yet they are so much more than that. They were so busy and yet they had the time to make me feel like I really mattered. They were lovely.
“It was a bad fall. It keeps me awake at night sometimes when I think about it but the care I got reassures me.”
Read Sheila's original Care Opinion story, and the response from Great Western Ambulance service.
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