After becoming an ornery ambulance officer on April 1,1975 at the age of 18 Mr Adams knew that this was the job he wanted to spend his life doing and by February 2, 1976 he joined the permanent service.

When Mr Adams retires on Friday this week he will have spent 45 years and six months as an ambulance officer.

"The time has gone by in the blink of an eye, I can't believe I've been doing it for so long," he said.

Mr Adams is the current station officer at Glen Innes, however he has also spent some time in Narrabri, and Tamworth with the service before returning to Glen Innes in 1998.

Mr Adams originally had no idea what he wanted to do after school, but after the sudden passing of his mother, he became driven to become an ambulance officer.

Encouraged by those in the field Mr Adams was persuaded into the career and has found himself enjoying the job ever since he started.

"I was supported by everyone to join the ambulance service," he said.

Over his many years in the service Mr Adams has seen many things that will stay with him.

"I've seen some terrible things, but I've seen some funny things as well and met some wonderful people," he said.

"There are two memorable jobs that will always stick with me and their names will always be important to me, that happened very early in my career," he said.

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Mr Adams said working in a small community can sometimes have its challenges.

"It can be hard working in a small town where you know most people but it can also be reassuring for the families to see familiar faces and I think that's important," he said.

When looking back on the years Mr Adams says there are many things he will miss.

"I will certainly miss the job and I will miss the camaraderie with the other staff, the interactions with the medical staff nurses doctors and other emergency services and I will miss that dearly. But I'd certainly like to occasionally pop in and have a coffee with everyone," he said.

When asked what it takes to be a successful ambulance officer, Mr Adams said he believes that it comes down to more than knowledge.

"While you've got to be clinically capable, being a paramedic is more than that, you need to have empathy towards your patients and be able to interact with them as well as your work colleagues to give the best care possible," he said.

"The knowledge of the staff and the younger paramedics is just amazing," he said.

"Emergency care is an evolving branch of medicine and it will continue to involve dramatically I believe in the next five years."

Mr Adams will be retiring with a sense of pride leaving the field in such capable hands knowing he will have time to relax, have time to play golf, and smelling the roses.