Introduction

This book aims to throw light on how and why, following a period of formal university education, undergraduate students and neophyte paramedics become enculturated, such as how newcomers participate in the normative practices of a cultural group, into a National Health Service (NHS) ambulance trust. The book is based around the successful completion of Dr John Donaghy’s doctoral thesis following his unique insight into the enculturation of student paramedics’ journey into the ambulance workplace. This, along with Professor Diane Waller’s (OBE) expert knowledge and experience of the professionalisation agenda, provides an in-depth opportunity to illuminate some of the day-to-day working practices of an NHS ambulance service trust. Undertaking an extensive 18-month ethnography, John was able to capture not only the working practices and traditions of the paramedics’ workplace but also the intricacies and nuances which underpinned many of these practices.