Hospital cleaner turned nurse to save crash victim

A HOSPITAL cleaner who turned medic and clambered into the mangled wreckage of a car to give a woman first aid has been awarded a top police honour.

Rosannagh Davison was returning home from her summer job as a cleaner when she saw a woman trapped in the wreck on the side of a country road, covered in blood and screaming for help.

And the student – then 17 – did such a good job of calming the casualty that an emergency crew who arrived on the scene mistook her for a fully qualified nurse.

She said: "I still had my uniform from the hospital on, which is just like a nurse's, so the people thought I was a trained nurse. I could hear people saying, 'Oh, it's OK, there's a nurse with her', and I was like, 'No, I'm a hospital cleaner, I've got no medical training'."

The student, now 19, said she "didn't stop to think" about leaping from her car and crawling into the wreckage to help the woman after discovering the crash on the road in the Borders.

Ms Davison managed to calm the woman down by talking to her while taking precautions to ensure she did not suffer life-threatening spinal injuries.

The victim was so severely hurt that a fire crew had to cut off the roof of the car to reach the victim.

Ms Davison, from Westruther, near Duns, Berwickshire, yesterday received a bravery award for her actions at a Lothian and Borders Police ceremony.

She said: "I was just coming back from work on one of these windy, twisty roads when I saw it. The accident must have literally just happened as I came round the corner.

"There was a big Jeep and a little car sort of pushed up on to the bank. So I just stopped my car, turned the music off and got out.

"I could see there was a lady in the car covered in blood, and she was screaming a lot with the pain, so I just climbed into the back. I didn't really stop to think too much, I just kind of did what I thought was right.

"Afterwards, I did think a bit, 'Oh, what if my weight had caused the car to topple over' and things like that. But at the time I just sort of went into autopilot."

Ms Davison added: "My mum worked in a hospital and I've done a first aid course, so I know the basics, and I know one of the important things is not to move the head and neck, because of spinal injuries and that kind of thing.

"So I held her head in my hands and made sure that she didn't move it, and then I just kept talking to her to distract her.

"She was in a lot of pain, and her arm was broken, and she was panicking quite a lot about that and kept trying to move it, so I made sure she kept it still.

"Her face was also covered in blood, so she might have had a broken nose, too.

"So I thought I just had to keep chatting to her about any old nonsense – about my job and my friends – to take her mind off it and keep calm."

The woman was taken to hospital, where she eventually made a full recovery. Ms Davison's selfless quick thinking was praised by the emergency services, who said her help was "invaluable and vital".

The geography student was honoured with a police meritorious award.

A schoolboy, cadets and police with once common trait: bravery

Stuart McLaren: The 13-year-old received his honour for chasing and catching a shoplifter he spotted stealing in Lothian Road, Edinburgh.

Staff tried to stop the 6ft suspect, but he fled.

However, as adults walking along the busy road ignored the shoplifter, the schoolboy chased him to a nearby archway where he was trying to hide his goods.

Confronting the thief, he demanded he hand over the stolen alcohol and tackled him as he tried to escape, holding on long enough for shop staff to arrive and detain him until police could be called.

He later directed police to the place the thief had hidden the drink.

He said: "I'm not sure why I did it. I just wanted to help the shop staff and didn't want the man to get away.

"I was a bit scared when I was running after him but after it was over, I was glad that I had helped."

Aaron Moore, Liam Dugan and Daniel Sturrock (pictured below, from left): The three army cadets were honoured for their bravery when they ran to the aid of an ice-cream man who had been shot.

The teenagers , all from Penicuik, Midlothian, were on their way to cadet training in the town when they heard two gunshots.

They then saw local ice-cream man Jim Allison stumble from his van, shouting that he had been shot.

While the gunman made his escape, the three cadets ran to Mr Allison's rescue, helping him back into his van, applying vital first aid and calling the emergency services.

They carried on despite fears the gunman may return and despite not having police assistance for ten minutes.

Mr Allison's life was almost certainly saved by the boys' actions.

Sergeant John Forsyth and Constables Craig Sorbie and Andrew Rooney: The three were handed their bravery award for confronting and disarming a gunman.

The two constables were on patrol in Seafield, West Lothian, when they received a call about a man who had threatened his partner with a gun and a knife.

Arriving at the house, they spotted the man climbing out of a ground-floor window. The man then pointed the gun at both officers, shouting that he would shoot them. He struck their car with his fist before PC Rooney reversed the vehicle a safe distance away and called for assistance.

The man tried to carjack a passing motorist and then threatened an innocent bystander.

Sgt Forsyth, a firearms expert who was off duty at the time, saw the incident and intervened, grabbing the suspect and taking the gun from him. It turned out to be a high-standard replica.