A DRUNK patient being treated by paramedics flicked crew with his own blood and damaged the inside of an ambulance, a court has heard.

Luke Berry, 24, of no fixed address, pleaded guilty to common assault and two counts of criminal damage to property valued under £5,000 at Hereford Magistrate Court on August 8.

The court heard how an ambulance crew were sent to attend an unconscious male on Bridge Street in Hereford on August 2.

The male, Berry, had passed out from drinking two bottles of wine.

A paramedic and doctor were part of the crew on hand to take Berry to Hereford County Hospital.

On the way, he stuck his finger up his nose, causing it to bleed, in an act the prosecution described as 'self harm'.

The court how Berry 'flicked' his own blood at medics and around the ambulance, 'covering' it with blood.

He was also described as behaving in an abusive manner to the paramedic.

The doctor on board was particularly concerned about the risk of disease spread by blood.

Berry's actions caused criminal damage to the ambulance as it need to be deep cleaned.

The deep clean cost £540 and caused the ambulance to be off the road for three hours.

The 24 year old faced a second charge of criminal damage for smearing the walls of his custody cell in Hereford with blood.

The court heard how he wrote the words 'ha ha ha' in blood on the wall.

In mitigation, Berry's defence explained that he had visited the doctor earlier that day and had received bad news which prompted him to drink heavily.

The defence argued that Berry did not intend to cause the damage and that he was 'deeply sorry' for his actions and had full respect for the emergency services.

He also said that if given the chance he would have cleaned the ambulance himself and he wanted to assure the ambulance crew that he has no disease in his blood.

Berry received a jail sentence of four weeks and is required to pay compensation costs of £50 and a victim surcharge of £115.