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00:00Our job is hardcore. It is life and it's death.
00:14Everything we do relies on this bond between us all.
00:25Just stay down. No, no, no. You're okay.
00:27You have to be comfortable in high-stress situations.
00:29In this brand new series.
00:35You're in the hospital.
00:36How much? Do you want to tell me what drugs you want and when?
00:39We take you into the theatres and wards of Sydney's busiest hospitals.
00:44And into the world of nurses.
00:47Nurses are the backbone of the hospital.
00:50Through their eyes, you'll see life.
00:52Big deep breath in. Push, push, push.
00:54No!
00:56Death.
00:58Unfortunately, we can't save her.
01:06And everything in between.
01:08Coughs, colds and sore holes.
01:10Take me to the fire.
01:12Welcome to the frontline.
01:14One, two, three.
01:16Of one of the world's toughest.
01:18It's all right, darling. We're looking after you, okay?
01:20And most trusted professions.
01:26It was scary, hey?
01:27Good.
01:28Nurses are superheroes.
01:29Without capes.
01:30Just in scrubs.
01:31They're the way.
01:32They're the way.
01:33They're the way.
01:34They're the way.
01:36This time on Nurses.
01:41A code blue alarm.
01:45That seems true to me.
01:46Sends the emergency team scrambling.
01:49It's all right, darling.
01:50We're looking after you.
01:51Good news.
01:52Good luck.
01:53And a man's second chance at life beats in this box, 1,000 kilometres away.
02:02When you tell your mates who aren't in healthcare that you're flying on a plane with a beating
02:05heart next to you, they're like, no, it's a bit surreal.
02:08One, two, three.
02:09And an unusual device is cutting off a man's circulation.
02:14We're going to need police rescue.
02:16Is it just a finger?
02:18Scrotum.
02:37St Vincent's Hospital has one of the leading heart and lung transplant clinics in the world.
02:43There are currently 75 people in Australia on the wait list for a donor heart.
02:50No problems with your batteries.
02:52Everything is absolutely fine.
02:54Yeah.
02:55For those that could die while they wait for a donor, there is hope.
03:00A battery operated artificial heart pump.
03:06In today's medicine, you can keep people alive with technology, but it's not all fairy tale stuff.
03:19There's some fantastic happy stories, but there's also some very, very sad stories.
03:25It's not an easy journey.
03:26But it's making that journey as smooth or as dignified as possible.
03:32My name is Desiree, and I'm the clinical nurse consultant for mechanical circulatory support.
03:53Or in layman's term, you can call them artificial hearts.
04:00Desiree is one of only a few mechanical heart specialist nurses worldwide.
04:06And today, she is visiting a patient who has been in the hospital for eight months.
04:15The patient knows he needs a transplant.
04:18He's got advanced heart failure.
04:21He's running out of options.
04:23That's the truth.
04:24Good morning, Ali.
04:25Good morning.
04:26How are you?
04:27Good, thank you.
04:29So, you understand that you need a heart transplant.
04:32Yes, I understand.
04:33And that's our ultimate goal, where we need to go.
04:37Because currently, you're bed bound.
04:39You can walk very little.
04:41You're attached to the drips.
04:43With heart donors in short supply, Ali needs time.
04:47Desiree explains how an artificial heart could work while he waits for a transplant.
04:52It won't take over, but it will support your heart function.
04:57So, it's a little pump that we implant in the heart.
05:00So, you've got two batteries and the controller.
05:03That's what it looks like.
05:07I think most people are quite surprised that these mechanical hearts actually exist.
05:14It's amazing engineering and technology.
05:17It's a battery run pump that's implanted into the heart that takes blood from the heart.
05:21Deposits it back into the aorta, and then the blood circulates around the body.
05:27But at the age of 64, and already suffering heart failure, the operation will be risky.
05:34It's major cardiac surgery to get this done.
05:37It's the same nearly as a transplant.
05:40This is what the little pump looks like.
05:42The pump, yeah.
05:43Ali isn't convinced.
05:45So, Desiree has asked one of her previous patients to visit.
05:49Ali?
05:50Andrew had his about two months ago.
05:56To show him your bag and the driveline.
05:59That's what you end up with.
06:00This is the bag, yeah?
06:01Yeah.
06:02The driveline's this one.
06:03Important.
06:04Don't ever take it out.
06:05And that goes through there, and it connects into here.
06:07Wow.
06:08Just a little tiny hole.
06:09Just got to keep it clean and all that.
06:12How are you feeling?
06:13100% better.
06:14Wow.
06:15It felt really good.
06:16You will feel really good, believe me.
06:18Yeah.
06:19And once your mind gets around it, you've got this.
06:21That's all good.
06:22Thank you very much.
06:23Good luck.
06:26All right.
06:27Bye.
06:28That's my wife.
06:29Good luck.
06:30God bless.
06:31You'll be fine.
06:33It's very hard at first, but you'll be strong.
06:38God bless.
06:40Take care of yourself, all right?
06:44It can be very emotional.
06:46You have to realise that people are very vulnerable
06:50when they come into these situations,
06:52and you have to treat them with dignity and respect.
06:55You have to make the journey for them easier.
07:01And then it's just recognising that underneath all of this
07:07is a human being, and kindness goes an awful long way.
07:13I'll come back later.
07:16Ali will remain in hospital until he receives a heart pump
07:20or a transplant.
07:22We don't know how long he's going to wait for a transplant.
07:26And eventually we'll get to a point where he may not even
07:29be suitable for a transplant anymore.
07:32He is the end of the road.
07:35Now it's just a waiting game.
07:44Ten floors down is the emergency department,
07:46which is one of the busiest in Australia.
07:51More than 55,000 patients walk or are wheeled through these doors every year.
08:01Do you want to tell me what drugs you want and when?
08:03Rock's going in right now.
08:04On shift today are 16 doctors and 18 nurses.
08:08And they'll treat up to 150 patients in need of urgent care.
08:18Emergency for us here at Vinny's is unpredictable.
08:21It's fast paced.
08:22It's different day to day.
08:24You see a variety of different patients with different conditions.
08:26So you really don't know what to expect.
08:33Good morning.
08:35Good, how are you?
08:41My name's Justine and I'm a clinical nurse specialist in the emergency department.
08:45This will be my 13th year here at Vinny's.
08:47I was a vet nurse for about 10 years and I just really loved the emergency part of it.
08:57That led me into emergency nursing.
09:00Got a fair few falls in the last two or three weeks.
09:03And I've stayed here ever since.
09:10Oh ****.
09:11That's in CT.
09:12CT.
09:14CT?
09:15That's what I do.
09:19The code blue is an alarm that sounds to alert teams to come and assist in an arrest situation
09:24where a patient deteriorated rapidly.
09:31This is now their number one priority.
09:34Every available nurse must get to where the alarm is coming from.
09:40Alright.
09:41The patient has had a severe allergic reaction to the CT contrast dye.
09:46What's the plan?
09:48He's now in anaphylactic shock and going downhill rapidly.
09:53Do you want me to grab a bed and take me back in?
09:56Just give me some intramusket.
09:58Anaphylaxis causes life-threatening sort of airway swelling, rapid and severe drop in blood pressure.
10:03So if not treated immediately, it can be life-threatening and progress to shock and death.
10:09We have a vitals machine.
10:15Emergency nurses learn to function in really stressful situations.
10:19You're entirely focused on your role.
10:21This is crucial to saving the life of the person in front of you.
10:25You're alright, mate. You're okay.
10:28We're just giving you adrenaline. It's going to feel weird, alright?
10:31You're okay.
10:33This adrenaline treatment is keep him lying down, maintain his airway and administer adrenaline as soon as possible.
10:40We're giving you some adrenaline. You're okay.
10:43Just let us take care of you, alright?
10:45We've given you some adrenaline.
10:47Adrenaline should stop the swelling of his airways.
10:51It's okay. You're okay. You're okay.
10:53It's alright, sweetheart.
10:55Just try and stay lying down. Just roll over.
10:58We're going to get you onto it.
11:00He wants him on his side.
11:02No, no, no. Just stay down. No, no, no.
11:04It's alright, darling. We're looking after you, okay? We're looking after you.
11:07Adrenaline going inside, okay?
11:10Okay.
11:12If the adrenaline doesn't kick in right now, the patient could die.
11:17Get you on. Please.
11:26A code blue alarm has Nurse Justine and most of emergency scrambling.
11:32A patient is in anaphylactic shock in the CT scan room and can't breathe.
11:38It's alright, darling. We're looking after you.
11:40The team has been working on the patient for five minutes and he's still in trouble.
11:44You feel a bit funny with the adrenaline going inside, okay?
11:47Yeah, okay.
11:48Just let us take care of you, alright?
11:49Okay.
11:51It's alright, sweetheart.
11:52Just try and stay lying down.
11:54Just roll over.
11:55We're going to get you onto it.
11:56Yeah, yeah. He wants him on his side.
11:59No, no, no. Just stay down. No, no, no.
12:01It's alright, darling. We're looking after you, okay? We're looking after you.
12:05Any patients that are in those situations, it'd be really scary.
12:08There's doctors and nurses everywhere. There's equipment going on them. There's alarms beeping.
12:12But it's important to not forget there's a person there who's probably petrified.
12:16It's alright, darling. We're looking after you.
12:18Then finally, the adrenaline they injected kicks in.
12:22We're going to get you a cough on this other bed, okay, mate? Just stay still for me.
12:25We'll go after you, alright?
12:27Sometimes the best thing you can do is hold the hand.
12:29Listen, it's a very highly emotional area, emergency department.
12:33We're just going to get you around to check you out, okay?
12:36Me too.
12:37Just stay lying down for us because we're moving the bed now, okay?
12:39Alright.
12:40You're okay, you're okay.
12:41Yeah, you're good. It was scary, hey?
12:43Good.
12:44Yeah.
12:49You're okay, you're okay. You're fine, you're fine.
12:52Thanks to the medical staff's quick response, he can now breathe.
12:57We're just going to connect you to our gizmos.
13:00But he needs to be closely monitored in one of the resuscitation bays in emergency.
13:07We will call your son and we'll tell him that you are fine, alright?
13:10Yes.
13:11Good.
13:12There is nothing to worry about.
13:19You know, the response to any emergency is tools done and we go to that patient who's critically unwell.
13:24Obviously, he was very unwell. He's much more stable now.
13:27Emergency is not a place you want to end up.
13:31So, if I can, you know, help someone have a bit of a better time while they're here, then that feels good.
13:38It's been six days since Desiree met with her patient, Ali, whose heart is failing.
13:45To survive, he needs an artificial heart pump while he waits for a transplant.
13:50The donor pool is not sufficient.
13:51We know that patients wait on the heart transplant list for more than 300 days on average at our centre.
14:00And for these patients that are critically ill that come in that cannot wait, they will die.
14:03But Ali might be one of the lucky ones.
14:07A few floors down.
14:08So, we've got a height of 174 centimetres.
14:12A call has come through to the transplant department to say that a donor heart has become available.
14:19My name is Rodrigo and I'm a heart-lung transplant coordinator.
14:26When we're on call, it's 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
14:27That's where we're both coordinating the transplant and then also retrieving the organs with our
14:29cardiothoracic surgical team.
14:30His last weight was 82 kilos.
14:31Rodrigo is a doctor of the heart.
14:32His last weight was 82 kilos.
14:33Rodrigo is a doctor of the heart transplant specialist.
14:34It's about 174 centimetres.
14:35A call has come through to the transplant department to say that a donor heart has become available.
14:40My name is Rodrigo and I'm a heart-lung transplant coordinator.
14:45But when we're on call, it's 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
14:48That's where we're both coordinating the transplant and then also retrieving the organs with our
14:54cardiothoracic surgical team.
14:56His last weight was 82 kilos.
14:59Rodrigo is one of seven transplant nurses at the hospital
15:03who are responsible for coordinating donor organ retrievals.
15:07We tell our patients that for a transplant to work,
15:09it's got to be 100 out of 100 boxes ticked.
15:12It cannot be 99.
15:13We need to make sure every box is ticked
15:15to ensure that this transplant's going to work.
15:18The donor heart is a perfect match for Ali on paper,
15:22but they still need to assess the organ.
15:26And that won't be easy.
15:29Do you want me to hold this?
15:30Oh, I got it.
15:32OK.
15:33Timing is critical.
15:34All right.
15:36And the heart is on the other side of the country.
15:40OK, everyone on.
15:43It's all good.
15:47We're just leaving Binal, so we'll see you in 10.15.
15:49Thanks, mate.
15:53The only way they can reach their interstate destination on time
15:57is by taking a private jet.
16:02That stuff's got to go in the front.
16:04The donor heart will only make it back to Sydney
16:07with the help of extraordinary technology.
16:10So we've got this machine called the organ care system,
16:12or known as the heart in the box,
16:14where we could take the heart out of the donor,
16:16get it beating again, and oxygenate it.
16:19We've been known to keep hearts on that machine
16:22for up to four or five hours.
16:25All right.
16:26Get there.
16:26Get the heart.
16:27You leave.
16:28That's it.
16:29The recipient is Ali.
16:41It's frail.
16:42So they decided to just go straight to transplant.
16:46The timings for this donor, we land at about 3.30, 3.40,
16:50to get to the hospital at approximately 4 a.m.
16:53to withdraw at 5 a.m.
16:56As a new transplant coordinator,
16:58we try not to get too emotionally involved in the organ donation.
17:03We're there just to do a job and do it well,
17:05and bring that organ back safely for our recipients.
17:08But we do know that every organ is precious.
17:12Every donor family, even more precious.
17:14Without them, we're not able to do the job we do,
17:17so they're the real heroes.
17:19Yeah, we're very lucky that they're making such a selfless decision
17:23at such a painful time of their lives.
17:26But they still need to tick a few more boxes,
17:29or this overnight trip could all be for nothing.
17:32We know that the heart's OK on paper,
17:34but we still need to physically inspect it
17:35to make sure it's suitable.
17:37We generally like to wait until we're utterly sure
17:38we're going to use these organs.
17:40There's been one or two cases
17:41where our patients have gone to sleep
17:43and woken up without a transplant.
17:45So we would be wanting to wait
17:47until we're 100% certain that the organs are viable.
17:50So we would be wanting to wait until we're 100% certain
17:53that the organs are viable.
17:55So we would be wanting to wait until we're 100% certain
17:59that the organs are viable.
18:02All right, everyone got everything?
18:04We're going to head now to the hospital.
18:10So at the moment, every minute counts.
18:15Still, fingers crossed.
18:16Anything and everything can come through the doors
18:33at St Vincent's Hospital in the Sydney suburb of Darlinghurst.
18:37The spectrum of stuff we see in emergency due to the demographic
18:45and the location, we see a lot of drug and alcohol.
18:48One, two, three.
18:50And we're right near all the major freeways and highways.
18:54We see a lot of major traumas.
18:56This is 93-year-old Mary.
18:58She's struck by a car today
19:00and the car has proceeded over her.
19:02Something always happens in emergency.
19:04It's unpredictable and that's kind of why I like it.
19:16St Vincent's emergency.
19:17The bat phone indicates the paramedics are en route
19:20with a critical patient.
19:22St Vincent's standing around for 420.
19:25We are coming to you with a 40-year-old male
19:29from the Surrey Hills area.
19:31The patient has fallen from standing high at the hip head
19:34and had seizure activity.
19:36St Vincent's coffee clear.
19:38This is an unknown male.
19:54We're assuming about 40 years of age.
19:56He's fallen over, hit his head on a wall,
19:59said he's had a very short, tonic-clonic-type seizure.
20:02We've been able to get him up and onto the stretcher
20:05at which time he's needing some airway assistance,
20:08otherwise he will occlude his airway.
20:10There was a cock ring on that has been removed.
20:14It's blue, so that has been removed.
20:16Some perfusion has returned to the penis.
20:18However, he still has a very large metal ring to his scrotum.
20:29One, three. One, two, three.
20:33How do we get that off?
20:34While they might have prepared for everything,
20:38the large metal ring clamped around the patient's scrotum
20:42is going to need a special kind of tool.
20:46India, we're going to need police rescue
20:49for cutting off our metal thing.
20:52Sure, I'll give them a call now.
20:54Please and thank you.
20:55If we left that device down there, we could lose that appendage.
21:07Across the country...
21:09Right, let's go.
21:10...Rodrigo and the transplant team
21:12have managed to retrieve the donor heart.
21:15Now they must keep the organ alive in an extraordinary machine
21:20while they fly thousands of kilometres back to St Vincent's.
21:30That is Ali's donor heart beating away.
21:33Current pressure is 92 on 62.
21:37We need to assess to see if this heart's working.
21:39The heart would have suffered a bit of injury
21:42through the process of death in the donor.
21:45So sometimes we do need a few hours to assess these hearts,
21:49predominantly looking at their cardiac function.
21:51Before we take off, we're going to draw some blood off that machine
21:55just to see what the lactate's doing.
22:00The main test that we do is blood gas.
22:01So we draw a bit of blood materially
22:03and we have looked to see how much oxygen is in that bloodstream.
22:08The organ needs to pass a crucial test
22:11or Ali won't receive a new heart.
22:15The last one's 8.04 and 7.78.
22:18The convenience.
22:21So we're looking for a downward trending lactate on the heart
22:23which means the heart's getting enough oxygen
22:25which means it's working.
22:29This is our one.
22:31As they prepare to board,
22:33Rodrigo anxiously waits for the result.
22:36We guys should have that result shortly.
22:46How's the lactate?
22:48Coming down.
22:50Good.
22:52It's past the test.
22:53They're good to go.
22:57It's Rod.
22:58Just letting you know, we're just loading the plane up now.
23:00So we're looking to land in Sydney at about quarter past nine.
23:03So we'll be back around 9.30, depending on traffic.
23:06It's now been more than six hours since Rodrigo and the team left St Vincent's.
23:18The donor heart's now safely strapped in at 10,000 metres.
23:22When you tell your mates who aren't in healthcare that you're flying on a plane with a beating heart next to you, they're like, nah, it's a bit surreal.
23:32Back in Sydney, knowing the heart is looking good for transplant,
23:41Ali is being prepped for surgery.
23:49When did you last eat food?
23:51Last night.
23:53Sister, thank you very much for everything, for your help.
23:55My pleasure.
23:56I'm so happy for you.
23:57It was amazing coming to work this morning and to hear the news.
24:01The jet has now landed.
24:14Next challenge is to battle Sydney traffic.
24:21Hey, it's Kaya in theatre three.
24:23It's Rod, one of the transplant coordinators.
24:26Scout nurses Kaya and Brooke will assist the six doctors in theatre.
24:31Yep, yep, yep.
24:32No worries.
24:33Bye.
24:36So we just got the call that we could move in.
24:38Everything happens quite quickly from now.
24:41One, two, three.
24:43Getting timing right in transplants is crucial.
24:46There's a lot of things that need to align to all go smoothly.
24:50Ali's going under, but the transplant won't start until the donor heart arrives.
24:58Start getting a bit more sticky, Ali.
25:02The heart's been on the organ care system now for about two and a half hours.
25:10So far it's looking positive.
25:12It looks good.
25:14We're just waiting for the heart to arrive.
25:18It should be here quite soon.
25:21We're just waiting.
25:24But traffic is at a standstill.
25:27Hopefully it's good by the time we get to base.
25:30In emergency, a man could lose an appendage unless Nurse Yun acts quickly.
25:50We're going to need police rescue.
25:53Yun, is it just a finger?
25:56Uh, scrotum.
25:58It's a scrotum ring.
26:00A large metal ring is cutting off his blood flow.
26:04While the team waits for police rescue to arrive, they're trying to find a quicker solution.
26:08Are you going to get a screwdriver?
26:09I've got one.
26:10I've got one.
26:11I've got one.
26:12A screwdriver?
26:13It's fine.
26:14It's fine.
26:15It's fine.
26:16It's fine.
26:17It's fine.
26:18It's fine.
26:19It's fine.
26:20It's fine.
26:21It's fine.
26:22It's fine.
26:23It's fine.
26:24It's fine.
26:25The screwdriver doesn't work.
26:27Just going to get that.
26:29But a common Allen key just might.
26:46Perfect.
26:49They managed to get the clamp off.
26:52But the patient is still unresponsive.
26:55Not responsive to pain.
26:58Not localizing.
27:03Open your eyes.
27:04Open your eyes.
27:05Come on, mate.
27:06Come on, come on, come on.
27:19Coming is an emergency, a patient has just had a metal clamp removed from his testicles but is still unresponsive.
27:36from his testicles but he's still unresponsive it looks cruel but we need
27:45to provide pain stimuli to get it up they need the man to wake up and breathe
27:53on his own this is trying to prevent intubation it's never good to tube
28:01someone because if you intubate someone it causes a lot airway trauma and
28:05it's just there's a lot of complications like aspiration pneumonia and things down
28:10the track that the team doesn't want open your eyes open your eyes come on mate
28:14open your eyes come on come on come on after initial concerns that the patient
28:23may have suffered a head injury after a fall nurse you are now suspects he may
28:29be under the influence of drugs he's taken something I mean he's pretty flat that
28:40thing in his mouth if you can tolerate that it just generally means you're
28:44pretty flat because you know when you stick a toothbrush down your throat too
28:48far and you get that gag reflex well he's not having that so
28:59it's all the same pretty flat
29:01hey hey hey hey it's okay it's okay you're in hospital okay yeah okay you're in a safe space I'm
29:14gonna I'll pull this out late stay in bed take a deep breath for us take a deep breath what happened
29:27gee we can kind of already guess what he's taken don't you're gonna have to stay still man
29:46young suspects the patient has taken G or GHB a party drug that can increase a
29:54person's sex drive don't pull that the effect can be hard to shake
30:02can you open your eyes yeah keep them open the drug gradually wears off but he's still a little
30:18confused hey bro hey I'm all right how are you yeah what's what's going on is that what's going on
30:30do you know what happened today you you were at a bus station in Sarah Hills do you remember that
30:38no you fell over I lost your consciousness luckily the patient has escaped any lasting injuries I mean
30:46we potentially did save his crown jewels this kind of wraps around the testicles this one's metal
30:59Alan keyed in it's pretty dangerous I mean cuts off circulation down the deluge balls
31:10I'm gonna put it in your bag okay man I've been in emergency for just over a year and a half
31:18definitely due to the demographic we see a lot of unnatural things that we're not really supposed to
31:25see do you know where you are now easy okay it seems like you're really with it now so just get
31:33one of the medical teams come up just eyeball you and just have a chat to you I think as an emergency
31:39nurse you do need the ability to empathize to someone otherwise you just can't give them the care that
31:44they need it's important to treat everyone the same regardless of what's happened it's really good
31:52seeing people come out of that situation you know makes it worthwhile a few floors above emergency is
32:09the cardiothoracic theater where Ali is prepped for surgery all he needs now is his new heart which is
32:19stuck in Sydney's peak hour traffic after an interstate flight yeah we're just waiting for the heart to
32:26arrive it should be here quite soon after a 25 minute delay the heart is on the move once again about
32:37three or four minutes all right let's go blood group apples donor is a for apples for me it's a huge
32:57privilege to be involved in these very very vulnerable moments in their life which they're never going to
33:02forget it's certainly not lost on me it's certainly not an everyday routine thing it's every transplant
33:08special because we do have a shortage of organs in the country so it's a huge huge privilege can I get
33:18another six and a half please Ali's life is now in the hands of the surgical team
33:32so at the moment on the table they're just dissecting the maybe part out so then there'll be a transition
33:43between the two every transplant surgery carries risks these patients are really really sick and prior to
33:52coming to the theater have they say well as nurses and we want to do our best to prevent complications and
33:58some of them are out of our control but we need to sort of know worst-case scenario so we can anticipate that
34:06so the hearts on the rig at the moment so they're able to start calling the heart down and deliver
34:22cardioplegia which will start to arrest the heart while they prepare the new heart Ali's diseased heart is removed
34:31there it goes
34:46right now a heart and lung bypass machine is the only thing keeping Ali alive while his new heart beats in a box
34:57the St Vincent's transplant team has just removed Ali's diseased heart
35:18there it goes in preparation for his new donor heart
35:29it is pretty surreal when you look up at the monitors and you see that that patient he has no ECG there because
35:40there is no heart in that person at that time it is pretty crazy but for a while they have no heart at all
35:47now the only thing keeping Ali alive is a machine
35:54the cardiopulmonary bypass machine can replace the function of the heart and lungs it drains the oxygenated
36:05blood through the vena cava and then it warms and oxygenates the blood and then pumps it back in through
36:14the aorta so you get circulation to the rest of the body without the need for a heart or lungs
36:21Ali's new donor heart is finally wheeled into theatre
36:28is the heart ready it's time for the delicate operation to give Ali his new heart
36:45can I get another for a long place the Scout nurse Brooke every transplant is meaningful
37:05just before I started at St Vincent's and my friend became a donor
37:10she was a world champion water skier and she was killed doing the bridge to bridge in the Hawkesbury
37:18then she donated her organs seeing the other side of that where those organs get utilized and provide
37:26people with a lot of life and quality of life it's actually very comforting
37:32it takes 90 intense minutes to connect Ali's new heart now it's time for the moment of truth
37:45hey Kyra do they have a pacing box they do
37:50will Ali's new heart beat by itself
38:01so right now there's a bit of nervous energy in the room
38:07waiting to see the heartbeat is the most important part of the surgery
38:13so everyone's just waiting with anticipation
38:26the heart's actually beating on its own now so you can see that top reading on that screen
38:32that's the heart beating
38:34it's an incredible thing it's very powerful to be involved in
38:41it's quite unreal really
38:45we're just about to start closing the chest
38:52it's all going really well
38:56it's the bypass machine that's about to leave so that's always a good sign
39:01so I've just called ICU and handed over to the nurse looking after him
39:21so we'll transfer the care to the nurses out there and his journey will continue
39:26but Ali's recovery is only just beginning
39:33his body could still reject the new heart
39:39at the moment we take it hour by hour
39:43because there's a very high chance of him bleeding
39:47the coming days will be critical to his survival
39:51patient Ali is being closely monitored in intensive care
40:08as he recovers from his heart transplant
40:11his eight month journey to get here has been extraordinary
40:16so you understand that you need a heart transplant
40:21the contribution nurses make to the whole healthcare journey of patients is tremendous
40:27I'll come back later
40:29I'm very privileged to work in a fantastic team
40:33we're just letting me know so we'll see you in 10-15
40:36Rodrigo led the mission across the country to save Ali's life
40:41I see really debilitating illnesses affecting people
40:48and simply put I just want them to get better
40:50and if I've got the skills to do that
40:52I'd love to just be able to help them
40:54all right let's go
40:55I like to see it as a big team effort
40:57so thank you very much for everything for you
41:00pleasure
41:02whether it's the anesthetic nurse
41:05the scrub nurse
41:06the scalp nurse
41:07the recovery nurse
41:08every one of those nurses roles is quite crucial to Ali's care
41:13it's quite a special thing to be a part of this team
41:17helping him through his journey
41:19the last time Rodrigo saw Ali was six weeks ago
41:40so we're just going to go up to level 10 north to see Ali just to see how he's going
41:44some of our patients are discharged 10 days after their transplant
41:50from the flip side
41:52sometimes in nursing you don't see quick progress
41:57we try and prepare our patients for this as well
42:00sometimes it takes years to get a result
42:02or to see a change in your patients
42:08Hi Ali, how are you going mate?
42:11Hi good, thank you
42:13I know it's been quite a number of weeks now since the transplant
42:16compared to your old heart how does it feel with the new heart?
42:20I feel much better with the new heart
42:23how's your breathing?
42:24my breathing is excellent
42:26more energy?
42:27more energy
42:28able to do more?
42:29yes, yes
42:30ok, no worries
42:31good, good
42:32before I became very tired
42:35now I am not
42:37I feel everyday much better
42:39I am very lucky
42:42you put me on the list
42:43yep
42:44and then
42:45we received after one week
42:47new heart
42:48yeah
42:49I was very lucky
42:50thank you very much for your help
42:53it's a pleasure
42:54yeah
42:55doctors say that in a week or two
42:57maybe rehab across the road
42:59yes
43:00to be able to strength
43:01yeah
43:02and then the goal after that is obviously going home
43:04I hope so
43:05how long is it since you've been home?
43:08so nine months
43:09nine months
43:10yeah
43:11what's the one thing you're really looking forward to?
43:13I want to have my dinner with my family together
43:16yeah
43:17I miss my home too much
43:19yeah
43:20the family that they donated the heart for me
43:23I thank you very much to them
43:25they rescued my life
43:27I was born
43:29new
43:30I feel myself newborn
43:32yeah
43:33the nurses
43:35they are like angels
43:37I
43:38I am very thankful
43:39thank you
43:40for the team
43:41look
43:42you're putting in the hard work now
43:44and
43:45it'll pay off
43:46thank you very much
43:47I feel so happy
43:49I am so happy
43:50you're doing a great job
43:51and stuff
43:52thank you very much
43:53okay
43:54see you soon
43:55I like to say sometimes the doctors get the handshakes but the nurses get the hugs
44:01we might not always have all the answers
44:03we might not be able to fix
44:05every problem
44:06I see the crowds they're rolling in
44:10but we're always there to help and we're there to care
44:12can't walk away from where I've been
44:17smile for me
44:19the rewarding part of this job is improving people's quality of life
44:24morning Muhammad
44:25it's just a great privilege to be in a position where you can work with so many really wonderful wonderful people
44:32so that's what the pump looks like
44:34but that will be with you
44:35it's
44:36it feels a bit heavy
44:38and the human nature and the resilience is remarkable
44:42I think I'm really lucky
44:43I don't think there's a lot of people who can say they love their job
44:52we just need you to stay for a little while
44:54just make sure that you're safe to go home
44:56I just get to be part of people's lives I guess for a little bit
44:58and that's rewarding to me
45:00to make
45:01gonna runnen through some ways in
45:04gonna remove the cross in
45:06it's until you've got to sing
45:10hallelujah
45:14hallelujah
45:19hallelujah
45:20hallelujah
45:21hallelujah
45:22hallelujah
45:23hallelujah
45:24hallelujah
45:25hallelujah
45:26hallelujah
45:27hallelujah
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