‘Clash’ of Brexit!

The uncertainty of Brexit causes discomfort. For frontline staff facing job-related stress on a permanent basis, this could be the tipping point. If and when Brexit goes ahead, many Europeans will likely return to their countries of origin. There has already been a significant increase in EU personnel leaving their jobs at ambulance service trusts since the 2016 referendum, exacerbating the shortage of paramedics nationwide. This inadvertently puts additional pressure on the staff who remain and try to meet their service's response targets.

Whether you are a British or European citizen, this situation affects patient care directly and indirectly. Even if employers try to reassure their EU staff, one cannot stop wondering on a daily basis how and when the tide will turn, even while they are treating patients. Some of these patients may be expressing compassion towards the EU paramedics as they discuss points of view and personal matters on their way to hospital—quite an ironic potential situation—while others will make it clear that according to them, it is only right that people should return ‘home’ to where they were born. This is the ‘Clash’ of remaining or Brexiting—should I stay or should I go?