HOSPITAL dramas such as Casualty and ER have produced a new brand of quack medical experts ready to pounce at the first sign of an emergency, according to ambulance workers.

A growing number of dedicated viewers are convinced they have learnt enough to suggest how to deal with a patient and even to carry out simple surgery.

The report, by the British Broadcasting Commission, cited one ambulanceman who said: “I had one guy who insisted he knew he could do a tracheotomy. He was like, ‘No, you put it in the neck, then you make an incision, turn it 90 degrees. Get out a Biro, I saw it on Casualty.’”

Another described being called out to see a victim who had suffered a fit. “This guy had obviously seen something on TV or film, that you put something in their mouth to stop them biting their tongue, so he pulled out 50p.

“Not only am I dealing with this guy fitting, he’s now semi-choking on 50p. It was chaos.”

The report, Dramatic Licence: Fact or Fiction?, found that viewers considered dramas to be a “useful tool” for learning about first aid. The report said that this was a worrying trend.

Several ambulancemen reported patients demanding that the ambulance’s blue lights be switched on because they had seen it on television.

One claimed medical dramas were “totally undermining” the Ambulance Service and another admitted that the series made their jobs harder.

A spokeswoman for the London Ambulance Service said that paramedics were employed as consultants for programmes. “We recognise that medical dramas do impact upon public perceptions.”

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