She understands the frustrations of callers seeking urgent emergency assistance for loved ones, yet says she can assist them far more easily when she’s not being screamed or yelled at.

Threats on her life are particularly hard to take; especially when she dons the blue jumpsuit to help save the lives of others.

‘’I’ve been doing this job for seven-and-a-half years ... it makes me feel good at the end of the day that I’ve helped people,’’ Ms Gaskin said.

‘’I deal with over 120 calls per shift – anything from abdominal pains up to cardiac arrest, hangings or drownings. Such calls do take a toll on your mental health, and abusive calls add to that.

‘’There’s generally one per shift – they could be threats on my life or on my family’s lives; people telling me they’re going to find out where I work and wait for me at the end of my shift; or just screaming at me.

‘’I want the public to know that being abusive to a call taker is not necessary and it only hinders the response.’’

Ms Gaskin, and fellow Southern Control Centre call taker David Vine, are among the faces of a new statewide awareness campaign. 

The No Excuse for Triple Zero (000) Call Taker Abuse campaign comes after a survey at the region’s call centre revealed a worrying trend.

‘’The survey measured the abuse in one shift late last year, and found that eight to 10 per cent of calls contained abuse,’’ centre manager Chief Superintendent Richard Cohen said.

‘’This campaign has been launched to highlight the prevalence of abuse and unacceptable behaviour.

‘’In the same way we have zero tolerance for abuse of paramedics, we are cracking down on abuse of call takers.’’

Chief Supt Cohen said abuse took many forms, including swearing, screaming, belittling, threatening or sexually suggestive behaviour. He said as demand for services had increased in recent years, so too had the level of abuse.

‘’We understand that people calling for an ambulance are faced with tragic and upsetting circumstances,’’ he said. ‘’We know it’s difficult to remain calm, but remember we are here to help.’’

Mr Vine – a call taker of 18 months – said callers should know that no question asked by a call taker was unnecessary.

‘’While people are wasting their breath abusing the call taker, it’s stopping us from getting vital information,’’ he said.

 ‘’Often paramedics have been dispatched early in the call, but we stay on the line to gather more details and give instructions.’’

NSW Ambulance are encouraging call takers to report incidents, and will pursue abusive callers under the Telecommunications Act.