One hour into the night shift, the control centre is already on its third cardiac arrest. The highly skilled team are administering care to a patient who has been stabbed and is bleeding heavily - the twelfth stabbing victim the service has dealt with so far that weekend.

Four miles away, another crew must stay with an elderly man long after they have treated him as they have spotted that he has run out of vital medication, and no-one else is available at this time of night to organise a refill.

A family at their wits' end and with nowhere else to turn asks the ambulance service for help with their relative who is an alcoholic and refusing medical attention, despite their heartfelt pleas. It is not immediately life threatening, but it ties up the ambulance crew for hours and is a poignant reminder for paramedic Maya of her own experiences of living alongside relatives struggling with addiction. Show less