Saving Lives in Cardiff | Watch the first episode on 20 August on BBC One Wales!
15.08.2024
Cardiff and Vale University Health Board is the focus of BBC’s six-part documentary series Saving Lives in Cardiff — and the first episode will air on 20 August at 9pm on BBC One Wales and BBC Two.
Saving Lives in Cardiff was filmed over several months in 2023 across the University Hospital of Wales, Noah’s Ark Children’s Hospital for Wales and University Hospital Llandough and lifts the lid on how surgeons make the difficult decisions about who gets treated next.
Suzanne Rankin, CEO of Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, said: “The programme will highlight the difficult challenges clinical teams face daily and the real-life impact of NHS waiting lists on those who need treatment and those who provide it. It also provides the opportunity to explain the complexities behind decision-making, which can be seen to be done with great professionalism, expertise and compassion, clearly demonstrating the values of the Health Board — showing that providing the very best patient care and treatment is always at the centre of everything we do.”
In the first episode, follow neurosurgeon Mr George Eralil, vascular surgeon Mr Lewis Meecham and lead thoracic surgeon Ms Malgorzata ‘Margaret’ Kornaszewska as they save and change lives against the backdrop of the longest waiting times in history.
In neurosurgery at the University Hospital of Wales, almost 200 people are waiting for complex, life-saving surgery and George prioritises 19-year-old Chelsea who has an extremely rare brain tumour. Her operation has been cancelled once already and, with news that the tumour is growing, it must be removed now.
If it’s delayed any longer, Chelsea could be left with permanent disabilities or even find her life at risk. Surgery is complicated, as the tumour is deep in her brain and close to areas that control her speech and ability to walk. But she trusts George with her life.
Speaking of Chelsea’s case, George said: “I decided to take part in Saving Lives in Cardiff for a number of reasons. There’s a lot of very good work that takes place that doesn’t get the recognition it deserves. All specialties are doing incredible work every day, and this was an opportunity to show just that.
“No form of brain surgery is possible without the help of other healthcare professionals. During Chelsea’s surgery, we also had very skilled anaesthetists, ODPs, scrub nurses and a theatre runner in the room — it really is a team effort. And of course, there are many teams and departments who you won’t see on the programme but are crucial in making sure such surgeries go ahead.”
The hospital is also home to the vascular department, which treats life and limb-threatening conditions caused by diseased blood vessels. It has some of the hospital’s highest numbers of emergency admissions and Lewis arrives early on a Monday morning, ready for a full day of planned operations. But emergencies have flooded in over the weekend, forcing the team to cancel all but one of his elective surgeries.
First into theatre is emergency admission John, who was rushed to hospital after collapsing. John’s life hangs in the balance due to an abdominal aortic aneurysm, known as a triple A and needs urgent surgery. Lewis is aware of how much is at stake in the battle to save John’s life as the 74-year-old is sole carer for his wife. Lewis makes a difficult phone call to John’s wife at home, so she is aware of just how grave the situation has become.
Speaking about the programme, Lewis told us: “The programme will show the difficulties patients face when accessing care, and the tremendous anxiety they experience in these very stressful moments. However, it will also show how hard staff work to deliver the best possible care they can do, despite the organisational constraints they currently work under.”
At University Hospital Llandough, Margaret is the only specialist in Wales still performing a life-changing operation on the NHS, treating the chest deformity pectus excavatum. It’s a condition that mostly affects boys, where instead of being level with the ribs, the breastbone is sunken.
With lung cancer cases taking priority in their department, it comes down to Margaret and her team to seize any gap in the theatre list for pectus surgery. Up next is 17-year-old rugby player Rhys, who has been waiting for two years for his operation.
The condition causes pressure on his heart and lungs and breathing difficulties. It’s also impacted his self-esteem and mental health since he was young because of how it affects his physical appearance. Surgery will be challenging because the ideal age for pectus surgery is 14 to 16. But Margaret, Rhys and his family all hope the operation he’s waited so long for, will transform his life.
Margaret explained: “I am the only surgeon in Wales performing this type of surgery and I wanted to take part in the series to raise awareness of the work we do and my department and our hospital. It was also a great opportunity to raise awareness of certain procedures, and I hope the episode shows how important it is to secure space and accommodate surgeries like this because they have an incredible physiological and psychological impact on patients like Rhys.
“As a surgeon, I couldn’t do my job without the support of my team and everybody who is involved along the way and the programme enabled us to show that there is no way for single working in the NHS. Everybody plays an extremely important role throughout the whole process, from a patient being investigated at the very beginning to after the surgery has taken place. We rely so much on the entire team, and we couldn’t exist without them.”
Watch Saving Lives in Cardiff on Tuesdays at 9pm on BBC One Wales on BBC Two. Missed an episode? Catch-up on BBC iPlayer.