Paramedics in the south Wales valleys are threatening to resign their jobs, claiming they are not being allowed to do their jobs properly.

The highly-skilled ambulance men and women have said they are prepared to give up their status and additional pay and return to working as ambulance technicians.

They feel that they are not being allowed to use their clinical judgement with the fear of being held to account

Jason Room, Unison

They are angry at the managers are continually checking their work.

The Welsh Ambulance Trust said it will discuss the situation with staff as soon as possible.

Paramedics are ambulance officers who have undergone weeks of additional training to learn life-saving skills such how to insert air tubes into the throat of an unconscious person.

The skills are considered essential to keeping a casualty's vital signs strong while he or she is rushed to hospital.

But the paramedics who work in the south Wales valleys claim their lives has become intolerable since managers instituted a new system to check and audit the way they treat their patients.

Some claim they are working in regime of fear.

Mr Edwards: Claims colleagues work in fear

Paramedic Wayne Edwards said: "People are getting frightened of working.

"It's always in the background that if you do one thing wrong, you are going to be crucified," he said.

Jason Room is the staff representative for Unison for the former Mid Glamorgan area.

The union claims managers have infuriated ambulance staff by pursuing a culture of blame.

Mr Room he had been approached by two paramedics who wanted to know how they could downgrade to technician status.

He said: "There's a general feeling across the board that they that they are lacking support and feeling very isolated.

Staff feel that they are trained professionals and they are sometimes required to make their own judgement.

Trust statement

"They feel that they are not being allowed to use their clinical judgement with the fear of being held to account for maybe a complaint that comes in.

Paramedics in other parts of south east Wales are planning to meet to discuss the situation.

The Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust has issued a statement saying it is "proud of its record in tackling issues that concern staff through a partnership approach with the recognised trade unions".

The statement said the trust "is disappointed that the issue has not been raised internally through the agreed procedures or at regular meetings".