'Irreplaceable' team member: MICA flight paramedic Justin Nunan retires

Officially, Justin will be hanging up the boots as a MICA flight paramedic.

More news:

But that's not all he's shutting the door on.

"The job is really confronting and it can harm you," the veteran paramedic confided.

"It is all about going out every day and you have to get 100 things right every time and if you can pull that off, then it's a good day."

It's not uncommon to hear emergency responders speak like this about their work.

After all, it's a profession known for it's tough mental load and physically taxing nature.

And after 36 years in the field, Justin has learnt routine is key when it comes to dealing with the job.

He calls them his letterbox moments.

"Every day when I come home after my shift, I pull into the driveway and physically walk to the letterbox," he explained.

At that moment I'm home, he said, "it's done, it's over, I shut off and I go inside and put it all behind me.

"Sometimes you can get to an accident or situation and you get a sense of feeling a long way from that letterbox moment - and it feels like home is very far away."

Some of the soon-to-be-retired-paramedic's far from home moments included the Thredbo Landslide, Kerang train crash and the Black Saturday fires.

"I went to Thredbo as part of the Victorian Urban Search and Rescue deployment and we did body recovery there for about three days," he said.

"There was a couple of times there where I felt a long way from home.

Other news:

"Another one was probably the Kerang train crash. I just went this is seriously bad and there was so much wrong and I just felt so far away from everything."

During the Black Saturday fires Justin was deployed for three days.

"I worked the night of the Black Saturday bushfires and the next day they asked me to go back with the search and rescue teams to do body recovery along with disaster victim identification," he said, thickly.

"I was sleeping rough for three days.

"I was completely cut off - couldn't call family - those three days were extremely tough and it was really grim work.

"When I got home and walked to the letterbox, I was so relieved."

There's no denying it's a tough gig.

And, while it might be rewarding, there's no denying it's not for everyone.

More news:

"You (can) get this isolating and alone feeling and you have to work through it and keep going and concentrate when everyone else can't," he said.

"On a good day, when you get it all right, you go home and have a good feeling. It helps you forget the trauma."

For 36 years, the MICA flight paramedic has driven and flown across the state rescuing people from the worst days in their lives.

He first started his career as an advanced life support paramedic at the age of 24.

He was first in Melbourne working at the Broadmeadows branch before completing his MICA course.

MICA paramedics have a higher clinical skill set and can perform more advanced medical procedures.

Working in Melbourne for some years, Justin was soon attracted to the Air Ambulance and aviation side of paramedicine.

More news:

For the past 12 years, Justin has been working as a MICA Air Ambulance paramedic. These paramedics are trained to perform advanced treatments in challenging environments such as on a boat or 10,000 feet in the air.

Speaking with Justin's senior team manager at Air Ambulance Victoria Brad Martin, he said Justin would be greatly missed.

"People like Justin are irreplaceable," he said.

"We cover a very large and vast amount of area and we do deliver an essential service and there is no one better at it than him.

"This weekend is his last shift and Justin is someone who is respected and respectful and regarded as a really competent mentor for many and someone who has been loved by all."

Working for over 30 years as a paramedic was a significant achievement, Brad said.

"Experience is something that is very hard to replace and one of the challenges in working on the aircraft is logistically hard to predict what sort of environment you'll be faced with," he said.

"If you can sum Justin up in a few words, he is a respected and respectful person and I have never met anyone that advocates more for his patients more strongly than Justin. He is held in such a high regard.

Aside from his letterbox moments, the veteran paramedic said he also relies on the supporting crew of paramedics he's worked with over the years.

Other news:

But for now, it's time for family.

"My focus will shift now to my family and relaxing," Justin said.

"My son and daughter-in-law are paramedics and Ben has grown up and there have been so many Christmases, birthdays and family functions I have missed.

"I am looking forward to getting home and having that letterbox feeling for the very last time - it will be a relief."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content: