Female paramedic’s tears after being sexually assaulted by patient aged SEVENTY FIVE in the back of her ambulance

A FEMALE paramedic broke down in tears after being sexually assaulted by a 75-year-old patient in the back of her ambulance.

Heidi had been taking the pensioner's blood pressure when he firmly grabbed one of her breasts and tried to touch her private parts.

The vile attacker repeatedly tried to kiss her hand while she tried to administer medical care after he had suffered a head injury in a fall.

The 29-year-old medic, from Norwich, then forced to drive her vile tormentor to hospital after her nightmare ordeal.

Now brave Heidi, who doesn't want to give her surname, has bravely spoken out as she begged the public not to assault paramedics trying to doing their jobs.

She insisted: "I didn't join this job to be abused or assaulted, sexually or physically."

Horrified Heidi said she's been spat at, punched, and assaulted over the years while doing her job helping badly-injured people as she courageously waived her right to anonymity.

But the outraged paramedic drew the line and decided enough was enough after the pensioner repeatedly groped her breasts.

She told the Eastern Daily Press that the shocking incident left her feeling "devalued" as a paramedic and anxious about going to work.

Heidi spoke out as shock new figures show a staggering 17% spike on assaults on frontline ambulance staff, with more than 230 incidents reported across the east of England alone.

Heidi, based at East of England Ambulance Service Trust's Longwater Depot, said it was getting so bad ambulances will have to carry security guards to protect paramedics.

Recalling the day she was attacked by the sex pest on her shift from hell, she said: "We had to help him up from the floor and as we were doing that he grabbed hold of my face and tried to pull me towards him to give me a kiss."

Heidi and her colleague, a student paramedic, moved the patient's hands and took him to the ambulance.

But the sick OAP then pawed one of Heidi's breasts and kissed her hand time and again as she tried to measure his blood pressure.

She said he attempted to grab her other breast as well as well as her crotch.

Stunned Heidi desperately freed herself before crying her eyes out as she drove the patient to hospital.

She reported the incident in May 2015 to police a fortnight later and her attacker was charged and pleaded guilty to sexual assault.

"At first I wasn't sure if I was over-reacting and that it was something paramedics tolerated or should tolerate.

"I spoke to a few people at work.

"One of my managers said 'what would you do if someone told you that story?'

"I said I would go to the police and that's what I did.

"I sat with the police officer in absolute tears.

"When I was making the statement to them I realised just how much it affected me," said Heidi.

"I felt embarrassed about having lost control of the situation and that the patient had got that far.

"I was angered by myself because I'm normally a very confident and very self-controlled person.

"I was angry that I'd become weak and hadn't established what was morally right and morally wrong.

"I lost all self-respect.

"There are no excuses for behaving like that.

"It made me feel devalued.

"We do come across a lot of things like this.

"You have to allow for it in our job because we encounter patients that don't have capacity and aren't aware of their actions," said Heidi.

"I've encountered sexual assaults before and generally they are unreported, but this time it was the fact that I didn't have the situation under control.

"It was as though my cape had been taken off.

"You got to jobs and you think no one will hurt you because you're a paramedic and you're doing a good job, but this patient ripped that away from me.

"I became really anxious coming to work, especially on Fridays and Saturdays when there's a bigger chance of seeing intoxicated patients."

It took Heidi some time to build up her confidence again and she was given counselling to help her.

"Patients who assault paramedics put a lot of pressure on staff and it causes unnecessary stress.

"We work long, hard hours.

"We always work over our hours, and we don't deserve to be abused or assaulted in any way," she said.

"We want to come to work and assist people when they need help and I don't think anyone should abuse that system.

"But I think it will gradually get worse and there will come a time when we have security guards on our ambulances.

"These incidents are simply not appropriate."