That's the experience of Cootamundra paramedic Amanda Kruit-Harding, who had multiple calls on her skills during a recent trip to Vietnam with her husband.

The first came only five hours into their flight to Ho Chi Minh City, when attendants called for any medically-trained passengers.

A number of people came forward, including Ms Kruit-Harding, to help a man in cardiac arrest.

"I got in there and jumped on the chest straight away ... then had the drugs pretty much thrown at me to be in charge of the adrenaline to give the patient," she said.

The man, who had been battling existing health issues, couldn't be revived.

While it was a sad beginning to Ms Kruit-Harding's holiday, she said helping people was the most rewarding job in the world.

Other incidences on the trip included helping a distraught woman locked inside a toilet in a resort, and helping an elderly man who collapsed.

The most rewarding call to duty was during a cooking class, when she was able to help a five-year-old girl who suffered a third degree burn - the event inspiring her to return to Vietnam in the future to help educate people about first aid. Ms Kruit-Harding and her husband had sat down to eat pancakes they had cooked while another group - including the girl and her family - stepped up to the hot plate.

"All we heard was a bang and a scream ... and she kept screaming," she said.

Because of the severity of the burn, putting it under running water risked stripping the skin off the damaged finger, which prompted Mrs Kruit-Harding to assist.

She acted quickly to cool the burn in a bowl of ice water and stopped it from continuing to the bone.

She also spoke with the class teacher who was "beside himself", and educated him about burns and what to do if a situation ever arose again.