Background: Most patients have contact with healthcare in the year prior to suicide and ambulance clinicians encounter these patients in all stages of the suicidal process (Rees. Traditionally, the focus in ambulance care is on emergency medicine and encountering patients with suicidal ideation can be challenging to the clinicians. Patients describe an ambivalence between living and dying and being in the process is characterized by loneliness and darkness, but there is also a longing for someone who truly see, listen and understand the situation.Aim: To illuminate the encounter between ambulance clinicians and patients in a suicidal process.Method: The presentation is founded in two qualitative interview studies. The first study has a phenomenographic approach and describes ambulance clinicians’ conceptions of responsibility when encountering patients in a suicidal process. The second study has a phenomenological hermeneutical approach and illuminates meaning of patients’ lived experience of encountering ambulance clinicians whilst being in a suicidal process.Ethical considerations: Both studies included in the presentation were approved by the Swedish Ethical Review Authority.Results: Ambulance clinicians describe lack of competence regarding suicidality. However, the competence that patients desire is compassion and humanity which impacts on the ambivalence between living and dying. Both clinicians and patients experience vulnerability in the encounter. To the clinicians, this vulnerability comes from coming forth as a person in the encounter. At the same time, it is the personal in clinicians that remind patients of human community and convey hope of a bearable life. Conclusions: The encounter with ambulance clinicians could be the start of the patients’ recovery. Not only can the clinicians offer a safe haven, but they can also support the patients in reclaiming their life stories.