IF you are ever unfortunate enough to be injured in a serious road smash, chances are the first person you see, and the last before being stretchered into accident and emergency, will be a paramedic.

In many respects ambulance workers take control of how an accident scene is worked, as their specialised knowledge is vital in giving crash victims the best chance of survival.

South Western Ambulance Service NHS Trust acting operations manager, Paul Fuller, explains: "We work as one big team with police and fire, but we are the leaders on how that patient is dealt with. One of the first things we do is find out if the patient is time-critical' or not. Normally we guide how the scene goes."

Mr Fuller, the father of an 18-year-old son, has been at numerous crash sites involving young drivers.

He said: "The worst experience is always when you go to road traffic collisions involving children, because if you have your own children you think of the worst case scenario - that the child could have been yours.

"But most staff are so professional and highly trained that they just get on with the job and maybe reflect about it afterwards."

In his 15 years in the ambulance service Mr Fuller has seen a lot, and unsurprisingly he believes many young accident victims could have avoided a trip in an ambulance if they had just cut their speed.

He said: "Speed is the killer, more so than age. I passed my driving test when I was 18 and there are some real young drivers out there who are very safe.

"I think pushing the driving age up would be unfair. If you are 20 or 21, OK, you may be a little more streetwise, but this doesn't make you more sensible.

"I look at my boy who recently passed his test and know he is sensible behind the wheel. But I know many older people who don't drive sensibly at all."

Mr Fuller, like the majority of emergency service workers we have spoken to, thinks education is the key to driving down road deaths.

"Young drivers could do with more training, more scenario training to do with speed," he said.

"We should definitely show pictures of what can happen in a really serious accident; we should show the sorts of injuries you can get.

"When my son passed his test in June I did the typical father thing and told him to drive carefully, but I also told him about the types of injuries I have seen drivers get. You would be surprised by the look on his face."