- 3 weeks ago
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00:00Music
00:09Our job is hardcore.
00:12It is life and it's death.
00:15Everything we do relies on this bond between us all.
00:19I've got secrets I can't lose
00:24Just stay down. No, no, no.
00:26You're okay, you're okay.
00:27You have to be comfortable in high stress situations.
00:33In this brand new series.
00:35You're in the hospital.
00:36How much?
00:37Do 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.
00:45And into the world of nurses.
00:48Nurses are the backbone of the hospital.
00:50Through their eyes, you'll see life.
00:52Big deep breath in.
00:53Push, push, push.
00:54Death.
00:57Unfortunately, we can't save her.
01:02And everything in between.
01:07Coughs, colds and sore holes.
01:09Take me to the fire.
01:12Welcome to the front line.
01:14Two, three.
01:15Of one of the world's toughest.
01:17It's alright darling, we're looking after you, okay?
01:20And most trusted professions.
01:23It was scary, hey?
01:27Nurses are superheroes.
01:29Without capes.
01:30Just in scrubs.
01:31Just breathe through it.
01:32Big deep breath.
01:33This time on nurses.
01:34An unworn baby in distress.
01:35So the baby's working quite hard.
01:36The heart rate's higher than normal.
01:37An emergency patient fights for every breath.
01:38You're alright.
01:39I know.
01:40I know.
01:41I know.
01:42Take me away full of blood.
01:43Here you go.
01:44And a code blue alarm sends intensive care scrambling.
01:48Can you give my hand a squeeze there darling?
01:50Can you hear me?
01:51In the emergency department of St Vincent's Hospital.
02:20Travis Dorisa 3 please.
02:22We've got an OPA here.
02:24A team of 16 doctors and 18 nurses treat an average of 980 patients a week.
02:31St Vincent's standing by for car 444.
02:35Something always happens in emergency, day or night.
02:38It's just busy all the time.
02:39A 50 year old gentleman found on the floor with a hematoma on his head.
02:43There's no predictability in your shifts and that's why I like it.
02:47Emergency can throw anything at you.
02:49Do you have any chest pain?
03:01It's the start of resuscitation nurse Yun Shift and a major trauma is on its way.
03:07St Vincent's standing by for 420.
03:10Good morning from car 420.
03:12We're coming to you with a 21, that's a 21 year old female who was kicked by a horse to the face.
03:19It's actually presented to us agitated and combative injuries wise.
03:23She's got a large deep laceration to the chin.
03:26She's lost two teeth.
03:27St Vincent's scopically.
03:29As a nurse in emergency, we see a lot of major traumas.
03:33The patients who need to be seen as quick as possible.
03:36Hey mate, can I call a major trauma to raise us three please?
03:39And generally can be life threatening.
03:42Are you ready to hand over Deb?
03:43Yeah.
03:44She's got massive head trauma so I think it would be urgent.
03:49Five minutes.
03:50Alright, let's get her across.
03:51With severe head trauma, the team are concerned about brain and spinal injuries.
03:57They must stabilise and assess the patient quickly.
04:04Can you squeeze my fingers here?
04:06Can you open your eyes for me?
04:08There's a lot of time critical things that need to be done.
04:11Open your eyes for us.
04:13Airway management or the cardiac management.
04:16Doing well.
04:18With the laceration to her jaw causing heavy bleeding,
04:21the patient becomes increasingly agitated as she struggles to breathe.
04:26You're alright.
04:27I know, I know.
04:28Okay.
04:29Yeah, I think she's jagging from that.
04:31One, two, three.
04:33I'm going to put that in there.
04:34Yep.
04:35Spit out all the blood.
04:37Alright my dear.
04:38She told me.
04:39Are you in pain at the moment?
04:41Let's get the ketamine in.
04:43We're just running again.
04:44Open your mouth and just spit out all the blood.
04:46She's definitely always full of blood.
04:47Yeah.
04:56On the other side of the harbour, in the maternity ward of the Martyr Hospital,
05:06a team of 90 midwives work around the clock to bring more than 2,000 babies into the world each year.
05:14Come on gorgeous.
05:15I get a lot of questions about when the baby's going to be born.
05:20I said, you know, I'll be so rich if I could tell you when your baby's born, but I just can't.
05:24The baby will just turn up when it's ready.
05:27Yeah, thank you, bye.
05:32My name is Lucy and I'm a registered midwife at the Martyr Hospital.
05:36So the heart rate should be between 110 and 160.
05:39I decided to become a midwife because my sister was born prematurely.
05:43You happy with the movement now?
05:44Yeah.
05:45My dad would take us to see Katie in the special care room, you know, she's literally tiny.
05:49She was only three and a half pounds.
05:51It fascinated me.
05:52All in all, I've been doing it for 15 years.
05:54She's come in with reduced movements.
05:56She's being induced tomorrow.
05:57I just think it's bloody awesome.
06:04All right, so you just set yourself up in here.
06:06It's going to be the room that you have your baby.
06:08Are you excited?
06:09I think I couldn't sleep last night.
06:11Oh, last night you couldn't sleep.
06:13That's just practice for what the newborn's going to be like, you know?
06:16Today, Lucy will be assisting first-time parents Jenny and Paul.
06:20So just make yourself comfy on the bed.
06:22That's it.
06:23A bit more.
06:24Whose baby is full term but hasn't moved into birthing position on its own.
06:29So Jenny's come in.
06:31It's her first baby.
06:32She's 39 weeks and six days.
06:35And she's coming for an induction.
06:37So we're going to start the labour process for her.
06:40Can you just lift this up for me?
06:42I'm going to have a fill of your tummy.
06:43Yeah.
06:44Before we start the induction process, we have to make sure that baby's happy.
06:46Oops.
06:47It's moving.
06:48So that can feel the head here.
06:49All right.
06:50So now I'm going to pop you on the monitor.
06:52We're going to have the whole birth documented.
06:54It's good.
06:55It's good though, isn't it?
06:56I actually feel very sorry for dad sometimes because they're like a deer in the headlights.
07:01They have no idea what to do.
07:03Camera V ready?
07:04Go on.
07:05I had one guy was just so adamant about getting this birth video.
07:10He had a GoPro attached to him and during the delivery felt faint and passed out.
07:16So goodness knows what this video looks like.
07:21Okay.
07:22So that's the baby's heartbeat.
07:23Okay.
07:2445% of women giving birth for the first time are induced, which involves giving artificial
07:30hormones to bring on contractions.
07:33Good morning.
07:34Good morning.
07:35Oh, Steve.
07:36How are you?
07:37Jenny's obstetrician, Dr. Stephen Lyons will break her waters before the induction hormones
07:43are administered.
07:44Paul, do you want to come?
07:46Where do you want to stand?
07:47Come up with his hand.
07:50All right.
07:51Nice, big, deep breaths.
07:52Just try and relax.
07:53That's it.
07:55Breathe it away.
07:56Breathe.
07:57Good.
07:58You're doing really well.
08:01So your waters are broken.
08:02Waters are broken.
08:03Yay.
08:04Really?
08:05Naturally?
08:06No, we broke them.
08:07A little bit of help.
08:08A little bit of help.
08:09Just a little bit.
08:10How good.
08:11So he used a tiny little hook called an amnicot and he then just scratched the top of the
08:17baby's head and that broke the bag of waters.
08:19Oh.
08:20Very brave.
08:21That was hard.
08:22Oh.
08:23So now we can start the drip and get you into labour.
08:26Do you mind just coming to check some oxytocin with me?
08:30Please.
08:31These are the little ampoules of oxytocin that we use.
08:35Tiny, but obviously it's a drug and it can potentially cause really strong contractions
08:41and the babies, you know, don't like it as much.
08:44So we've got to keep a really close eye on the baby.
08:47Alright, so we've got the drip.
08:50Okay.
08:51This is going to go through a pump and it's going to connect just onto here.
08:57Okay.
08:58Alright.
08:59We start it on a very, very small dose.
09:00We don't want you to suddenly go into these big contractions.
09:02Cause we don't want to stress the baby out.
09:04Labour's stressful for the baby, but it's a good stress and what we want to be careful
09:09of is not stressing the baby out too much and the baby getting tired.
09:12Cause that's when we have to intervene a little bit.
09:14So ideally I don't really want you to be on your back cause gravity helps.
09:18That's it.
09:19Sit down.
09:20Good job.
09:21How's that?
09:22Each and every contraction is getting closer and closer to meeting your baby.
09:26And that's what, if you think that way, you'll see it as a positive pain.
09:29Yeah.
09:30And your body's doing exactly what it needs to do.
09:32So it's just about trusting it and being patient.
09:35Across town, in the emergency department of St. Vincent's Hospital.
09:49Spit out all the blood.
09:50Alright, my dear.
09:51You're doing alright.
09:52Youn is attending to a 21 year old critically injured patient.
09:57We've got a young lady over there.
09:58She's been kicked in the face by a horse.
10:00Have a look at her airway here.
10:02It looks pretty alright.
10:04She's got pretty bad injuries to her jaw.
10:07There's no other injuries externally.
10:08I think it's all just head injuries.
10:10We're worried about her airway.
10:12We've just got to do the airway plan.
10:14Angus, you're happy to do the plan A.
10:16Yep.
10:17Great.
10:18And you've got two dual suction.
10:19Yep.
10:20In-line mobilisation.
10:21Perfect.
10:22We're just giving the ketamine now.
10:23The decision is made to sedate and intubate the patient
10:27to maintain an open airway and prevent suffocation.
10:30In major trauma, you're never alone, which is a good thing.
10:33It's a big team.
10:34Still breathing.
10:36And everyone gets assigned a role.
10:40Some roles are more stressful than others.
10:42But even though you're stressed out, you are dealing with
10:45somebody's life.
10:46You want them to live, so you just focus on your job.
10:52With the patient safely intubated and stabilised,
10:56she can now be sent to medical imaging for injury assessment.
11:00We don't get it very often, but when we get people coming
11:03from horses, you're worried about the impact
11:05and whether when they're being hit in the head,
11:08whether that's caused their brain to bounce to the back of their head,
11:11which can cause an injury called a country q injury.
11:14One, two, three.
11:17A brain bleed could result in stroke or seizures and can be fatal.
11:23In emergency, 21-year-old Albany is undergoing a CT scan
11:25In emergency, 21-year-old Albany is undergoing a CT scan
11:51to assess her injuries following a kick from a horse.
11:55Yeah.
11:56OK.
11:57Ellen, you don't know if there's nothing?
12:02Yeah.
12:03She's got depressed, but through and through a fracture of the front section.
12:13She's got a fracture of her jaw, so she's lost a couple of her front teeth on the bottom
12:17as well.
12:18So she'll need to have that repaired by the plastics team.
12:20All right.
12:21We all good?
12:22Well, she's lucky she doesn't have a significant head injury that needs to be taken to the
12:26operating theatre.
12:27With a brain bleed ruled out, Albany is returned to Yun's care in the emergency department
12:34as she awaits her family's arrival.
12:38across the harbour in the maternity ward of the Martyr Hospital.
12:51How are you feeling, Jenny?
12:53It's four hours since Jenny's induction began.
12:56Big deep breaths.
12:57Really feel your lungs up.
12:58Good.
12:59I'm going to do a vaginal examination to see what stage her labour is.
13:00She's saying she doesn't know how long she can do it for.
13:01All right, so you're just going to feel some pressure and a bit of touching.
13:08All right.
13:09Just breathe through it.
13:10Big deep breaths.
13:11The cervix has got to get to fully dilated.
13:12So 10 centimetres.
13:13So, cervix is super, super thin.
13:14So it's done a lot of work.
13:15So we're definitely, definitely on our way.
13:16It's about two to three.
13:17It's about three to three.
13:18It's about a bit stretchy.
13:19Mm-hmm.
13:20Yeah, but it's stretchy.
13:21All right.
13:22OK, thank you so much.
13:23All right, thank you so much.
13:24Let's see.
13:25Okay.
13:26Good.
13:27All right.
13:28So you're going to do some pressure and a bit of touching.
13:29All right, just breathe through it.
13:30Big, deep breaths.
13:31The cervix has got to get to fully dilated.
13:32So it's 10 centimetres.
13:33So, cervix is super, super thin.
13:34So it's done a lot of work.
13:36So we're definitely, definitely on our way.
13:39So that's two to three.
13:41That's stretchy.
13:42Mm-hmm.
13:43Yeah, but it's stretchy.
13:44All right.
13:45Okay, I think you'd be better off standing up.
13:48Yeah, so get off the pool side.
13:51It's okay. Over to your side.
13:53Well done. Good.
13:54With Jenny's painful contractions ramping up,
13:58her unborn baby's heart rate begins to increase,
14:02a sign of fetal distress.
14:05Going through something like childbirth
14:07can get pretty full-on and stressful.
14:11That's when the labour hormones don't flow.
14:13That can cause more issues.
14:18That's the way. You keep breathing.
14:26Fifteen minutes across town,
14:28in the emergency department of St Vincent's Hospital,
14:31horse kick patient Albany has undergone a CT scan.
14:36So they don't think that's any intreprenial bleeds.
14:38They just think arm and arm and the teeth.
14:43Yeah, okay, sure.
14:44I was just going to clean her up before family get here.
14:49I've always wanted to do something where it involves helping people,
14:53just so the family can come in and not freak out.
14:55My mum is a nurse.
15:01She works in Balmain as a rehab nurse.
15:05I suppose she has been an influence of me becoming a nurse.
15:08For us, this is our job and this is what we're trained for.
15:13But for the families, it's one of the worst days of their life.
15:17So we want to make sure that they're prepared for that.
15:20While the doctor talks to the family,
15:22we always like to clean up the patients a bit.
15:24Particularly for her, she's got a lot of facial injuries,
15:27which can be quite distressing.
15:28You never would expect your loved one
15:31to be in a kind of trauma like this.
15:34And when people have been intubated,
15:37obviously it's still going to be shocking,
15:39but we want to do everything we can to support them
15:41and prepare them for that.
15:42While working in this department,
15:59you know, you'll have extreme grief responses
16:02where people are crying and screaming.
16:04You have other people that haven't processed what's gone on.
16:07And that's why, you know, it's really important as a nurse
16:10that you are also looking after the patient,
16:12but also looking after the family
16:14because, you know, they're just as important as the patient.
16:20I've been in emergency for, I think, just over a year and a half.
16:24And, yeah, it's about what I've expected.
16:26At any given moment, things change.
16:32Can you tell me what's happened?
16:34How'd you end up on the floor?
16:36The relative of the patient in resus three
16:39has just had a collapse.
16:42That's the brother of the girl.
16:44This ship's just chaos.
16:48He's pumping to you early.
16:49He's giving up girls.
16:52How'd you end up on the floor?
17:02Albany has been kicked in the face by a horse
17:07and is stabilising in emergency.
17:11That's the brother of the girl.
17:13Her brother has passed out after seeing her facial injuries
17:16and needs medical attention of his own.
17:19It's probably very scary for someone to see
17:32their loved one
17:33with a breathing tube
17:35and a lot of facial injuries.
17:37Yeah, we'll take your figure and all that stuff.
17:39You all right?
17:40Yeah.
17:41Yeah.
17:42What happened?
17:43Yeah, I just saw my sister and...
17:45Yeah, no.
17:46Yeah, she's shot down.
17:47You all right?
17:47No, no, no.
17:48Just take a sec.
17:48Just take a sec.
17:50He's OK.
17:51He's been triaged.
17:52We'll just monitor him for a little while
17:54and then hopefully he'll be able to go home after that.
17:58Albany's brother will now be held in emergency for observation
18:02while she's moved to the intensive care unit
18:05before the surgery to repair her broken jaw and missing teeth.
18:10They look like they've come out from the root.
18:11They do.
18:12Exactly.
18:13They're intact.
18:13Yeah.
18:14We're just going to try and keep the teeth alive
18:16and usually we put them in back in their mouth
18:20but we can't this time
18:21so we're going to put them in milk
18:23and that helps for gravity.
18:25The proteins in milk maintain the perfect pH balance
18:28and stop the root from bursting like it would if placed in water.
18:34I know, I know.
18:36Oh, no.
18:38How did that happen?
18:38I'm feeling you may have just done that on camera.
18:47Is there a good story associated?
18:49No.
18:49No, I was just messing around with a surfboard.
18:52Oh, no.
18:53I know.
18:54What's an error?
18:58It was at the bottom of the ocean.
19:00I watched it float away.
19:01Oh, no.
19:01In the maternity department of the Martyr Hospital...
19:16So, lean over the bed.
19:17Mum-to-be Jenny is now six hours into her induction.
19:22Nice and focused, good.
19:23..and midwife Lucy is worried about the baby's rising heart rate.
19:27Going through something like childbirth can get pretty stressful.
19:32That's when the labour hormones don't flow.
19:34That can cause more issues.
19:36Slow your breathing.
19:38Slow it down.
19:39That's it.
19:40Stay nice and focused.
19:41You can have it whenever you like.
19:49Would you like the epidural?
19:52You want me to organise it for you?
19:53OK.
19:54OK, that's OK.
19:55I'm going to go and call the doctor.
19:56He's going to come and put the epidural in, OK?
20:00An epidural is the most effective form of pain relief we have on offer.
20:04I find that when women have the oxytocin drip,
20:06they are strong, frequent contractions,
20:08which is obviously what we need,
20:09but because they're artificial, they ramp up so quickly
20:12and often women need more pain relief.
20:15Fentanyl, 20ml syringe.
20:18They're basically locating the epidural space.
20:21It's sort of the lower part of the back,
20:23and they inject local anaesthetic into that space.
20:27They're actually still able to use their legs,
20:29and they can still feel when that pressure,
20:31when that contraction's coming,
20:32but they just don't have any pain associated with it.
20:34Once the epidural is working,
20:42Jenny is no longer in pain,
20:45but Lucy is called the obstetrician
20:47because the baby still appears to be in distress.
20:51Remember that baseline I told you about?
20:53It's now risen, so the baby's working quite hard.
20:56The heart rate's a bit higher than normal,
20:58so I think the baby's probably getting a bit tired.
21:01So Stephen can assess the situation,
21:03and then we see what we do.
21:04You're not out of the woods until the baby's out.
21:0615 minutes across town,
21:20in the intensive care unit of St. Vincent's Hospital,
21:25a team of eight doctors and 21 nurses
21:28work around the clock to provide high-level care
21:31to over 1,200 critically ill patients each year.
21:36Now, looking up for me.
21:38It's interesting, the cases that you see.
21:40Being an ICU nurse makes you really realise
21:43that life is so precious.
21:44So my name's Zoe and I am an intensive care nurse at St. Vincent's.
22:06I have just made it to a year and a half, so it's still a bit new, but I love it.
22:14So, welcome to work.
22:15Everyone's feeling well?
22:16Yes.
22:17Oh, check me.
22:18To be an ICU nurse, you need to be empathetic.
22:21You need to be on the ball all the time,
22:23and it is a big thing to be a team player.
22:26We have two transplants coming this afternoon,
22:28a heart and a lung.
22:30When there are things like arrests or if you need to roll your patients,
22:33you need to be able to rely on your team members.
22:35So Zoe, you'll be all on your own down on the south side,
22:37so just call out for help.
22:43Intensive care patients are critically ill
22:46and require constant close monitoring,
22:49so the nurses work on a one-to-one ratio with their patients.
22:53On Zoe's shift tonight,
22:56she's looking after a patient from Darwin
22:58who has just had major heart surgery.
23:01This patient's name is Colleen.
23:03She has just come from the Northern Territory,
23:07and she had coronary artery bypass surgery
23:10where they put some little grafts inside the heart.
23:14The care that Zoe provides Colleen in the next 24 hours
23:18will be critical to her recovery.
23:23Colleen, you're just waking up.
23:24Can you squeeze my hands?
23:26That's really good.
23:27What about this side?
23:28Give it a squeeze.
23:29That's great.
23:30And can you wiggle your toes for me?
23:33Perfect.
23:34It's very uncomfortable, that tube, isn't it?
23:36Colleen was intubated for the operation.
23:39Zoe needs to monitor her as she comes out of sedation
23:43and make sure she is stable enough
23:45for the breathing tube to be removed.
23:48Are you in pain?
23:52Water, I know.
23:54Once that tube comes out,
23:55we can give you some four hours after, OK?
23:58I mean, everyone gets really thirsty,
24:01and that's the first question they always ask
24:03after having the breathing tube in.
24:06Once we take the breathing tube out,
24:07then you have to wait four to six hours
24:09because patients can have problems with swallowing.
24:12That's good.
24:13I know.
24:14Try and slow down your breathing for me.
24:17You're doing really well.
24:18The patients are in hospital 24-7.
24:21I like to think when you come to work,
24:23you have to treat them like we're coming
24:24into almost their little home,
24:26and you need to look after them like that was your own family.
24:31Nice deep breaths.
24:32I'd do anything for them.
24:37This afternoon,
24:39Zoe is working with friend and team leader, Ali.
24:42I love working with Ali.
24:48She makes work fun.
24:49She's organised.
24:50She knows what's going on,
24:51and she's around all the time.
24:54I've known Zoe probably about a year now.
24:57I've only got my second runner skill done.
24:59Go, girl.
25:00That's why you need to use it.
25:01We both were new grads here.
25:03For me, it was a few years ago.
25:05I've got to do my intubation.
25:06From sort of the minute we met,
25:08we got on like a house on fire.
25:10Yeah.
25:12So I have a few roles.
25:14I work on the floor.
25:16So I'm a bedside nurse for intensive care patients.
25:20I'm also a team leader in charge,
25:22which is bed flow, patient flow.
25:24I think tomorrow morning we could discharge it to the water.
25:27Being a resource for other nurses on the floor.
25:30And I'm also a code blue runner,
25:33so we run to all of the medical emergencies in the hospital
25:37if they do occur.
25:39Bye, Kat. Thanks.
25:42Allie, code blue 9-1-3-20.
25:49Oh, is this all right?
25:509-1-3-20.
25:51OK, cool. Thanks.
25:53You go.
25:54A code blue alerts all staff
25:57to a life-threatening medical emergency,
25:59such as a cardiac or respiratory arrest.
26:02The reason we respond to a code blue
26:05is because of the training that we do.
26:08Being intensive care,
26:09we assist in airway management,
26:12intubation,
26:12which is something that you do do at code blue.
26:159 North is geriatrics.
26:18Happy to be airway and I'll do defib?
26:36Yep.
26:36Allie is being called from the intensive care unit
26:41to assist with an elderly man who has had a seizure.
26:45She will resuscitate him if needed.
26:47Hi, I'm Allie.
26:49This is Katie and Marisa from ICU.
26:52She arrives to find that the elderly patient is unconscious,
26:56but is breathing with the aid of an oxygen mask.
26:59He was really struggling to breathe.
27:03And that's the latest blood pressure?
27:05Yeah, that's the latest blood pressure.
27:06OK, cool.
27:07There is no complacency in our job
27:08because patients that are deteriorating,
27:10they could die.
27:12Can you give my hand a squeeze there, darling?
27:14Can you hear me?
27:17No, I feel like he's...
27:19It's making some noises.
27:21I might just check his...
27:23Do you please, let me see?
27:24So they're a size 7, but they're reacting.
27:28Both of them?
27:28Both of them, yeah.
27:29And he's feeling the character.
27:32Can you hear me?
27:39There we go.
27:40Hello, darling.
27:40You're OK?
27:42Oh, you're all right.
27:43Sorry.
27:44After a tense few minutes,
27:45the man regains consciousness.
27:48OK.
27:48It's OK.
27:49It's OK, darling.
27:50It's all right.
27:52Yeah.
27:52He is dazed,
27:54but doesn't need resuscitation from Ali.
27:57All right, guys.
27:58I hope everything's OK.
27:59If you need anything,
28:00please just call us again.
28:01Yeah.
28:03With the elderly man now conscious
28:05and not requiring CPR,
28:07Ali can return to ICU.
28:09When patients are completely reliant
28:12on specialised care with us,
28:14I think you do feel that weight
28:16and I think that's what makes you
28:18always push to do the best for your patients
28:21because I think you know
28:23how responsible you are for them
28:25and that's a huge privilege.
28:31All right.
28:31It's straight back to managing the 20-bed unit
28:37where Zoe's patient, Colleen,
28:41is now awake enough
28:42to have her breathing tube removed.
28:46Colleen, I've got Sophie here.
28:49She's going to help us take that tube out, OK?
28:51Hi, Colleen.
28:53We're nearly there.
28:54In a moment, Colleen,
28:57we're going to get you to do
28:58a really big, deep cough, OK?
29:01And we'll just pour that.
29:03Half this later.
29:05OK, big, half this.
29:08That's really good, Colleen.
29:09Really good.
29:10How nice is it to have that out?
29:13Just going to put some oxygen
29:14up your nose, OK?
29:17Your surgery went all well.
29:19We've had everyone calling.
29:20We've had your uncle and Tanya call as well.
29:24Everyone's excited to hear how you are.
29:27It's interesting because it's not always
29:29the patient that are the ones
29:30that are the anxious or worried.
29:33You know, they're there
29:33and they know that we're there
29:34all the time to look after them.
29:36You did really well.
29:37You're only on a little bit of medication
29:39for your blood pressure.
29:41But I think the family,
29:42making sure that they're aware
29:44of what's going on,
29:45you know, they can call 24-7
29:47and get an update about their family member
29:50because, you know, shift work,
29:52we're always there.
29:52With Colleen comfortable,
29:55it's time for Zoe's dinner break
29:57and she's on a mission.
30:00Better run.
30:02Zoe's off to Oona's.
30:06Look, they do great snitzels.
30:08It's just up the road.
30:09They're very good snitzels.
30:13And they're massive.
30:15She's got 30 minutes.
30:16I mean, I'm timing her.
30:17I'm timing her.
30:18The strict 30-minute dinner rule
30:23helps the ICU nurses
30:25maintain their one-to-one patient ratio.
30:28So Zoe's dinner dash
30:29must be complete by 6.22pm
30:32and the clock is ticking.
30:35They'll be getting takeaways for sure.
30:36Oh, God, it's so funny.
30:42Annabelle and I love chicken snitzels from Oona's.
30:44We'll get one when we're on shift together
30:47that's an afternoon shift mainly.
30:49Normally, we do Uber Eats.
30:52One chicken extra, I'll see gravy.
30:53That's our little thing that we go,
30:55OK, having a bad day?
30:56Don't you worry.
30:57We've got our snitzel.
31:00Here you go.
31:01Thank you so much.
31:02So good.
31:03You have to lighten your workday somehow
31:05and I love a challenge.
31:09Try it.
31:11That must have been the speediest service ever.
31:14Looks delicious.
31:15Oh, it's so good.
31:16Look at this.
31:17We'll bring you back a doggy bag.
31:18You know you've got, like,
31:19five minutes to get back here.
31:21That's fine.
31:23Let's go.
31:24Hurry up.
31:25We've got to go.
31:25They're leaving now.
31:30So she's got five minutes to get back.
31:36You've got to keep it light around here.
31:39We've got to have a bit of fun.
31:42Thanks.
31:43One minute 30 to go.
31:44We'll make it.
31:45With time to spare, I think.
31:48I think she's not going to make it.
31:5018.23.
31:58Not back.
32:01Knew it.
32:03Knew it.
32:08One minute late.
32:09We can't leave.
32:11I blame that on the lift.
32:13So the baby's working quite hard.
32:29The heart rate's a bit higher than normal.
32:32In maternity, midwife Lucy has called in Jenny's obstetrician
32:37over concerns that her baby is in distress.
32:40So Stephen's going to examine you,
32:42and then we just go from there, OK?
32:46Hopefully his head is just sitting there.
32:49And we can have a baby.
32:50Going through something like childbirth.
32:52I know it's scary for some people, you know?
32:54But I think you've just got to be supportive
32:55and empowering and positive.
32:57Oh, good.
33:05So the head's just sitting there.
33:07Jenny's contractions have helped move the baby into position,
33:11and although the baby's heart rate is elevated,
33:14she is ready to deliver.
33:15Don't be nervous.
33:16You're going to be fine.
33:16It's normal to feel like this, but you've got it.
33:20You're going to meet your baby soon.
33:22On my shift as well.
33:24I know.
33:25So when you get a contraction, you're going to take a deep breath in.
33:28You're going to push with everything you've got.
33:30All right.
33:31You can do it.
33:34Just imagine this baby coming out.
33:36All right, there's a contraction.
33:38OK.
33:38All right, here we go.
33:39Big deep breath in.
33:39Ready for it?
33:40One more way.
33:41Hold your breath.
33:41Hold down.
33:42Chin down.
33:42Chin down.
33:43Chin down.
33:44So push into your bottom.
33:45Push, push, push.
33:45That's it.
33:46That's the spot.
33:47Amazing.
33:48Fantastic.
33:49Good.
33:49Breathe out quickly.
33:50And back in quickly.
33:51Quick, quick, quick, quick.
33:52And again, go for it.
33:53Hold it, hold it, hold it.
33:54That's it.
33:55Good job.
33:57Just ease baby out.
33:58Good.
34:00That's it.
34:01Slowly, slowly.
34:05It's such an amazing job.
34:25Welcome and happy birthday.
34:28Building these relationships with couples.
34:30Thank you, Mommy and Daddy.
34:32Seeing that, the rawness.
34:34And you're going to be part of their birth.
34:39Like, that's insane.
34:40Congratulations.
34:41Thank you so much.
34:42You're welcome.
34:43It was a pleasure.
34:44Bye.
34:44I can see myself being a midwife for a very long time.
34:47I love it.
34:48So why would you give something up that you love?
34:51I had a baby.
34:52Did you?
34:53Yeah, we had it.
34:54Look, you got your birth in.
34:56I know.
34:57Yes!
35:10Yes!
35:12Anything and everything can come through the doors of the emergency department at St Vincent's Hospital.
35:20yeah I'm about to change the pump sir you're seeing the most critically unwell
35:24patients do you feeling dizzy at the moment yeah so you need to be able to
35:28act fast
35:36my name is Hannah and I work as a resuscitation nurse at some instance
35:42before working in the emergency department I was a geriatric trained
35:46nurse now Frances I was concerned about your haemoglobin levels so whenever I
35:51do see an elderly patient come in who's very vulnerable and unwell it always
35:55gets me a little bit more than probably any other patient I think it's a real
36:01privilege to be a nurse you're with patients at the bedside at their most
36:05vulnerable times multiple ICU remissions since the transplant unfortunately
36:09that's an added responsibility on us to be there for them because it's a strange
36:15environment for them to be in your girls so if you're able to give them that
36:21extra little TLC at the moment it's even more important the softest pillow I could
36:25find no worries we're just gonna get you onto the hospital bed Robert okay Hannah
36:32is one of three specially trained resuscitation nurses on shift when
36:36paramedics bring in a suspected stroke victim he only says no no no no no on our
36:42arrival he had obvious right-sided facial droop and has had just
36:46incomprehensible sounds what you worry about when you do get a straight call is
36:50that the effects of the stroke have already taken place with that patient and
36:55they're going to be forever living with those whether or not that's to do with
37:03their mobility or swallowing or speech it can be quite confronting for the patient
37:09we'll do everything we'll tell you what to do all right oh poor thing oh you're all right
37:16you're all right the patient is already aware that there is something very wrong I think it was
37:26very emotional for everyone in the room seeing that we don't know anything can
37:39you grab a posy flush please my name's dr. Chrissy where are you at the moment what
37:49month is it the team need to act quickly to determine whether Robert's stroke has
37:57been caused by a bleed to the brain a blood clot or a blockage of blood flow can
38:03you close your eyes for me good can you squeeze my head good patient clearly
38:10understands what's being told to him but unfortunately unable to communicate yeah
38:16can you put them on the desk so we don't lose them please trying to identify which
38:20stroke has occurred is really important 36 one is so that we can organize the
38:26correct intervention because it can be life-threatening and have long-term
38:30effects for that patient Robert we're gonna take you for a scan of your head so
38:36getting him to a CT scanner as quickly as possible is really imperative I just take
38:41that tourniquet of his arm the average adult brain has about a hundred
38:45billion cells with every minute that passes the stroke attacks up to 1.9 million of
38:52them worst case scenario is death
38:54it's okay Robert it's okay
39:05in emergency Hannah's 78 year old stroke patient Robert has undergone a CT scan which has revealed
39:12dead brain tissue caused by a blood clot
39:19Robert lives alone and the stroke he suffered has made it difficult for him to communicate his medical history to the team
39:37are you trying to tell me a number three three days three days ago this started okay for Robert the worst is over from today on it will be about his level of recovery it looks like you're walking and everything is okay but it's affected your speech very much so yes Rob is going to be admitted to the stroke unit he'll go up and have an MRI test
39:44speech pathologist
39:51yeah there you go good job love he lives alone and it's usually quite independent so it is quite a profound change I know it's a big day
39:58seeing him obviously really upset and crying is
40:28Do you want a little tissue?
40:31Because it's very relevant to my life.
40:33My grandpa had a stroke.
40:35And I just wanted to be able to give him the best treatment that I could, like I know that
40:39my grandpa did when he had his stroke.
40:46Is there anything I can do to make you more comfortable?
40:50Sometimes it's just the little things, like holding their hand and just listening to what
40:54they have to say that can really have an effect on a person.
40:59Rob, have you got any pain?
41:02No.
41:03Obviously it's a big process of, you know, realisation that his life will most likely not return to
41:10how it was and what he's known.
41:12But yeah, I think that for us, if we can just support our patients with these major changes
41:18and, I don't know, extra TLC, that can sometimes, hopefully, I like to think make a difference.
41:25Although it's been a difficult day for Robert, there's a small silver lining.
41:31Hey Robert, we've got some good news for you.
41:33We just found a lotto ticket in your bag.
41:36$2 million.
41:38Whoa.
41:40We'll have to claim that when you get out, hey?
41:43Yeah.
41:45You're in good hands now.
41:47Yeah.
41:49I do.
42:14It's been seven days since intensive care nurse Zoe removed her patient Colleen's breathing tube
42:21following heart surgery.
42:24Hi.
42:26How are you?
42:28Colleen travelled from the Northern Territory and there's something she would love to do
42:33before returning home.
42:35We were chatting to Colleen and we found out that her wish is to see the Harbour Bridge
42:40before she has to go back to Darwin.
42:43Alright, off we go.
42:46So we're going up to our private hospital, level 14.
42:50That's where we've got the best view of the Harbour Bridge.
42:56I love to go the extra mile for my patients, so to be able to do this with Colleen makes me really excited.
43:02Oh, I can see it!
43:05Woohoo!
43:08There is the famous Harbour Bridge.
43:10Wow.
43:14I tried to stand up.
43:15Yeah.
43:17Oh, it's so exciting for you.
43:20Yeah.
43:22Before I came I just wanted to see the bridge, you know.
43:25And I'm excited to see it from here.
43:32Oh, I love that.
43:34Looking after an ICU patient a lot of the times when they are intubated,
43:39you don't really get to know the patient very well until you can take the breathing tube out and talk to them.
43:43At home, you live near water.
43:46Yeah.
43:48Do you go fishing?
43:49Fishing, yeah. I take my kids to swim.
43:51Yep.
43:52Because they like going to the beach.
43:54And you get to know them and you actually, you do really care about them.
43:57The light of the dawn has no meaning.
44:01You're lost in the haze of the night.
44:05When you do really care for the patient and when they've been there for a long time,
44:08it's also about doing those little things that make their stay in ICU so much better.
44:17The best part is actually seeing their progress.
44:19And I think it just teaches you that life is so fragile and it's so special.
44:25The buzz from birth unit you get is indescribable.
44:29Couldn't imagine doing anything else.
44:30I can be what you want me to be.
44:34Don't you give me your words.
44:36Don't be sad.
44:38Working together as a team in emergency,
44:41making sure that person stayed alive during our shift,
44:44got them to ICU or wherever they need to get to.
44:50Hearing later that they've gone out of hospital.
44:53Oh, oh, oh, right here.
44:57That kind of feels good, you know?
44:59Yeah.
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