Aims and objectives: The aim of this study was to describe and explain elderly patients’ lived experiences of prehospital emergency care in cases of suspected hip fractures after falling. Background: Hip fractures represent a major health problem for older people and are a common assignment for the Emergency Medical Services (EMS), but there is little information on how patients experience prehospital emergency care. Design: A reflective lifeworld approach based on phenomenological epistemology was used in an interview study within the context of healthcare science. Methods: Ten elderly patients were interviewed. These depth interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed for meanings. Results: The comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon is: ‘Happy to have been rescued, despite bad experiences as well as good’. The elderly patient is offered care in an open and friendly atmosphere concurrently with feeling anxiety about the treatment. Intervention with streamlined care and treatment can thus simultaneously be beneficial as well as doing harm. Patients experience confusion and the need to ask questions about what really happened in the ambulance. Bad experiences remain unexplained. This study is based on three themes with relevant sub-themes: efficiency, concerned encounters and suffering from care. Conclusions: Our study contribute to this field of discussion, showing that administering drugs which cause side effects in already fragile older people is compatible with neither evidence-based care nor evidenced-based medicine. The side effects of pain relief – however efficient that pain relief may be – are taken seriously. Relevance to clinical practice: Pain relief in the EMS should be individualised. Responsibility for patients’ safety regarding pain relief is emphasised. This development should focus on care that is already good and gradually eradicate compassionless care. Keywords: caring science, hip fracture, lived experiences, phenomenology, emergency medical services, ambulance, care pathway, prehospital emergency nurse