Maldon resident and Advanced Life Support paramedic Barry Curtain is one of five Ambulance Victoria workers who have been awarded Ambulance Service Medals, as part of the 2024 national honours list. 

The Australian honours list acknowledges Australians for achievements, service and contribution to community above and beyond the call of duty.  The Ambulance Service Medal recognises distinguished service and is awarded to a select group of people, as nominated by their peers, each year.

Prior to starting work as a paramedic in 2001, Barry was an intensive care nurse. “I had friends who worked as paramedics, and I thought it might be a good job for me – one that I could continue until retirement,” Barry said. With plenty of qualifications and experience as an IC nurse under his belt, Barry only had to study for a year before he was ready to begin his new career.  

It is mainly Barry’s contribution in the field of manual handling from 2009 to 2023 that led to him being awarded an Ambulance Service Medal. He played a major role in writing Ambulance Victoria’s ‘bible’ for manual handling policy and procedure.  

Lifting a sick or injured patient is no easy task.  Fortunately for the latest generations of paramedics, new equipment plus procedures that Barry has been instrumental in developing have made their jobs easier and safer.  

“Before the new manual handling program, our paramedics were the most injured group of workers in the country,” Barry said. “We’ve turned that around.”

Barry also played a role in designing an alpine ambulance that can drive over snow and negotiate steep, narrow tracks. It’s a compact, side-by-side vehicle that accommodates a driver, a paramedic and a patient.  

“Previously, if you were injured and a regular ambulance couldn’t get to you, you’d be ferried out by skidoo towing a sled,” Barry said. Not an ideal scenario! 

Currently, Barry is a Team Manager working out of the Bendigo depot. He spends half of his time driving a desk and the other half working as a paramedic. “We have a saying in the industry,” Barry said. “You  always keep a hand on the stretcher.”

According to Barry, he finds both parts of his job satisfying – he’s happy doing admin but he also enjoys jumping in an ambulance. “It’s good to be out on the road, and you meet great people,” he said.

For paramedics, it’s not just the potential for physical injuries that needs to be managed.  

The [Tarrangower] Times asked Barry what the most difficult jobs have been in his 23 years as a paramedic. “Any jobs involving kids,” he said.  “They’re really hard.”

When it comes to debriefing, Barry is lucky to have wife Kirrily who is an emergency department nurse; she is very much aware of just how tough a paramedic’s job can be.  

Barry pointed out that Ambulance Victoria has made a good investment in ensuring the mental well-being of its staff. Paramedics can contact the Victorian Ambulance Counselling Unit and see a psychologist whenever it is needed. All staff are given routine assessments and there is an excellent peer support network. “If you’ve been out on a tough job, the other paramedics will ask if you’re okay,” Barry said.    

What advice does Barry have for anyone who is thinking of training to become a paramedic? “I think you need to have a good understanding of what the job involves,” he said. “So I suggest that before you fully commit, you volunteer on a Community Emergency Response Team or as an Ambulance Community Officer.”

Having moved from Melbourne to Maldon a little over a year ago, Barry and Kirrily have settled well into country life. They have two adult children who are busy with study, work and travel.  

When it comes to stress-busting activities, Barry’s got quite a few up his sleeve. He rides around the local tracks on his gravel bike and both he and Kirrily swim at Cairn Curran and Expedition Pass. They also enjoy checking out the live music scene, and Barry sings in the pub choir in Castlemaine. 

In a sense, Barry has come full circle by moving to Maldon. There’s a strong family connection to the town. His grandmother – Josephine Ferguson – features on a photograph hanging in the Athenaeum Library.  “She and others did quite a bit of fundraising to rebuild after the original Athenaeum Library burnt down,” he said. 

A thoughtful and friendly bloke, Barry is modest when talking about his achievements. He received an email from the Governor General’s office midway through last year telling him of his nomination, and was thrilled when he was notified about a month before Australia Day that he was to be awarded an Ambulance Services Medal. Later this year, he’ll go to Government House in Melbourne to be presented with his medal.  

This article appeared in the Tarrangower Times, 9 February 2024.