ORCON (Operational Research CONsultancy) – These are the timelines set out by the government for us to reach patients from the moment the call starts.  8 minutes is our deadline for Cat A Red calls (“immediately life threatening” . . . but oddly are not when we arrive).  So, taking into account that the person calling rarely speaks English and that this has to be translated, Ambulance crews are tied up dealing with someone who’s called us for a broken finger nail, the route to the patient is full of pot holes, speed bumps, trendies on single speed bikes, black cab drivers “surfing the blue wave”, general idiots in cars and the en-masse population occupying the road – it is no wonder that these targets are hard to meet!.