DAYS of exploring new places, reading and spending time with family await Tamworth's Sean O'Connor as he prepares to call time on his career as a paramedic.
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For four decades, he has been there for the best and worst moments of locals' lives and he wouldn't trade a second of it.
"It's a bit of an emotional roller coaster to be honest," Mr O'Connor told the Leader.
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"I think about all the friends I've made along the way, the things you will miss and the things you won't miss.
"The good outcomes for people, such as delivering babies and saving someone after a heart attack, will be the things I will probably miss the most.
"I don't think I'll miss the early starts in -4 degree weather, but there is plenty of things I will miss as well, especially the people I work with."
Starting out in the medical field as a nurse before turning his hand to paramedicine, Mr O'Connor said there had been plenty of changes to the industry since he started 40 years ago.
"There has been unbelievable changes, in fact the quality of the paramedics out there today wouldn't have been conceivable when I first started," he said.
"The gear they have, the knowledge they have and the education they have to have was just unheard of in those days, now it is just an expectation."
Having served in a variety of roles as a paramedic, all but three years of Mr O'Connor's tenure have been spent in Tamworth.
"I've been away twice and come back twice, I did do a couple of years down in Dubbo, but other than that, I've been here the whole time," he said.
"As well as that, I have relieved in every station from Mungindi to Tenterfield and everywhere in between, which was a lot of fun.
"The last official day with Ambulance NSW will be September 4, but my last day of being rostered on the road will be tomorrow [Tuesday], so it is a bit sad but also very exciting."
The New England duty operations manager said he was looking forward to spending more time with his family.
"I've got six kids and five of them live in the Tamworth area, which is great," he said.
"I'm looking forward to spending more time with them, travelling and I am confident I am leaving the job in good hands.
"These paramedics we have here right now are fantastic, they're young, fit and it's a pleasure to hand over to these sorts of people."