In the second episode of Saving Lives, attention is turned to the University Hospital of Wales, where the cardiology department, led by consultant cardiac surgeon Dheeraj Mehta, faces a daunting task.
With a population of nearly 1.5 million relying on their services, Dheeraj and his team of just five consultants juggle a waiting list of almost 90 patients, all while managing a constant influx of emergency cases.
One of their top priorities is 65-year-old Malcolm, a retired railway worker who arrived at the Emergency Unit in agonising chest pain, unaware he was having a severe heart attack. Extensive tests reveal significant damage to Malcolm’s heart, leaving him with a high-risk surgery as his only option.
The procedure will take at least ten hours, during which Dheeraj and his team will stop Malcolm’s heart to replace a valve and perform five bypasses to divert blood around his diseased arteries. As Malcolm’s wife and family anxiously await his fate, Dheeraj is resolute in his determination to give Malcolm hope for the future.
Meanwhile, in ophthalmology, we meet 29-year-old Adam, who is about to undergo his 11th operation in three years. Adam’s life took a tragic turn when he fell victim to a brutal, unprovoked attack that left him with catastrophic brain injuries and severely damaged eyesight. He now volunteers on the neurosurgery ward where he once spent months as a patient, unable to return to his previous job as an electrician due to his restricted sight.
Consultant ophthalmologist Magdalena Popiela, who joined the team in Cardiff over a year ago, performs the procedure. She inherits one of the hospital’s longest waiting lists, with nearly 2,000 patients awaiting eye procedures, almost half of whom have been waiting over two years for life-changing cataract surgery.
The episode also takes us to the Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital for Wales, the country’s only dedicated children’s hospital. Here, consultant paediatric gastrointestinal surgeon Oliver Jackson faces a challenging situation. Amid a packed theatre day, he prioritises 17-week-old Jasmine, who has spent her entire life in the hospital and is awaiting bowel surgery.
As the smallest of triplets born prematurely, weighing just 600g, Jasmine’s surgery is crucial for her to finally return home and reunite with her sisters. However, a hurdle arises as the nursing team struggles to secure a high-dependency bed for Jasmine, and consultant Oliver emphasises the heightened risks if her surgery is further delayed.
Saving Lives Season 2 Episode 2 airs Tuesday 27 August 2024 at 9:00 pm on BBC Two.
