‘Life’s too short’ is an expression that means more to Sarah and Stuart Houghton than most of us.
As paramedics in Aberdeen, the happy-go-lucky husband and wife duo witness the fragility of life every single day.
“We see people who are alive and well one day and the next day something awful has happened like an accident,” says Sarah.
“You just never know what is going to happen from one minute to the next.
“It does make you think that you do need to treasure and appreciate the good things in life because life is quite temporary.
“This job absolutely hammers that home.
“It definitely changes your perspective on things.”
Married Aberdeen paramedics say it’s a ‘privilege’ to help people
Laughing and joking throughout the interview, Sarah and Stuart’s positive nature and ‘life’s too short’ attitude is infectious.
But it’s not only a good sense of humour that the couple share as the kindred spirits are equally as kind, caring and compassionate when it comes to helping people in need throughout the area.
Based at the Ambulance Station in Aberdeen’s Ashgrove Road, Sarah, 33, who is a paramedic clinical team leader and Stuart, 45, who is a rapid response paramedic, both say their careers are so much more than jobs.
“It’s a really privileged position to be in because not many people get to do a job that is quite as all-encompassing or so person-focused,” says Sarah.
“I adore my job, I think it’s one of the best jobs in the world.
“We get welcomed into people’s lives briefly, into their homes and get to be involved in helping people with whatever emergency they have at the time.”
Sarah and Stuart’s path to becoming paramedics…
So where does the couple’s journey to becoming paramedics begin?
For Sarah, she was inspired to join the ambulance service after completing a first aid course as a teenager.
“I’ve wanted to be a paramedic since the age of 15,” says Sarah.
“I completed a first aid training course with the British Red Cross and I loved it.
“It felt great to be in a position to help people and learn more skills.”
Initially Sarah trained to become a community nurse, working in Fochabers before moving to Elmbank Medical Practice.
“I really enjoyed it,” says Sarah.
“But underneath it all I thought I’d like to work in the ambulance service and have that emergency care side of things while still being in a community facing setting.”
‘We absolutely love being paramedics’
After joining the ambulance service 10 years ago in 2015, Sarah has progressed from an ambulance technician to a paramedic clinical team leader.
Sarah, like Stuart, is also part of the Rapid Response Units (RRUs) where single paramedics in cars are dispatched to incidents where they can reach the patient quickly.
“I absolutely love it,” says Sarah.
“Although the ambulance service attends life threatening calls, we also attend people with chronic conditions and maybe people who are struggling with mental health.
“It’s nice to be able to problem solve and offer some light when someone has felt lost.
“You could go to all manner of jobs in one shift so the variety and the challenge that comes with that variety is really enjoyable.
“One time, I started my day with a death and ended with a birth.”
From RAF to paramedic…
Stuart’s path into the ambulance service began in the Royal Air Force.
“I was an aircraft engineer in the air force for 15 years and while I was there, I did a detachment to the Falkland Islands as an ambulance driver.
“I really enjoyed it so I came back to the UK and I joined the First Responders team.”
At that time, Stuart had left the RAF and was working as an engineer for the airline BMI Regional.
But when circumstances with his job changed, Stuart took a leap of faith and decided to become a paramedic.
“BMI moved their operation down to England and they wanted me to go with them but I couldn’t.
“The ambulance service was always in my mind after the Falkland Islands so I thought if I don’t go for it now then I never will.
“So I joined as a trainee ambulance technician and qualified as a paramedic in 2019 and then joined the rapid response unit in 2023.”
Husband and wife paramedics love going the extra mile…
Joining the ambulance service turned out to be one of the best decisions of Stuart’s life.
“I get a lot of satisfaction from helping the families of the patient,” says Stuart.
“That’s quite a big deal because it’s not just about helping the patient.
“The families are lost, they don’t know what’s going on and what to do so it’s helping people through that that I find really satisfying.”
Through the ambulance service, Stuart not only found a job he loves but it’s where he met Sarah.
“We met in 2016 when Stuart joined but we didn’t get together until 2018,” says Sarah.
“We definitely got on with each other.”
‘It’s good to have each other to lean on’
The couple tied the knot nearly two years ago.
“It was quite funny as there was a large ambulance presence there for the night-time part,” says Sarah.
Both working in what can be an intense profession, the couple say that they often lean on each other after tough days.
“When we come home we speak for an hour about what we’ve done that day, obviously without sharing personal details,” says Stuart.
“We limit it to an hour as you could quite easily talk about it all night.”
‘We love helping patients and their families’
Sarah says it really helps to be able to talk things through.
“If one of us comes home and is quiet or is clearly upset about something then we’re generally quite good at handling that with one another,” says Sarah.
“Stuart has been more unlucky when it comes to sad or challenging jobs.
“We’ve got used to recognising each others mannerisms or moods post work and you can figure out what’s best to do at that point.”
As Sarah and Stuart both work in single crewed paramedic cars, it’s not often that they attend the same jobs.
Starring role in TV show Paramedics on Scene…
But they do have a funny memory of attending a job together after appearing in the BBC Scotland programme Paramedics on Scene.
“We were on the first series of Paramedics on Scene,” says Sarah.
“A couple of years after the season had aired, we were on shift together.
“We went round to this lady who had a fall and when we walked into her living room, we were on TV and she was pleasantly surprised.”
The importance of downtime…
With such rewarding yet intense jobs, Stuart and Sarah relish their downtime especially precious time with Stuart’s children from a previous relationship, Alex, 18, Kera, 15, and 10-year-old Eva.
“We love spending time off with the kids,” says Stuart.
“We also love to travel and go for walks.
“We’re also big foodies and love going out for dinner.”
So what’s next for this formidable paramedic husband and wife team?
Looking to the future, Sarah would love to become an Advanced Paramedic Practitioner while Stuart has plans to work with the air ambulance and latterly teach trainee paramedics.
“We’re both proud to do what we do as much of a rollercoaster as it is,” says Stuart.
If you’re inspired by Sarah and Stuart and would like to join the Scottish Ambulance Service, you can find out more on their website scottishambulance.com
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