News / Health
Southmead Hospital appears in BBC documentary
Emergency staff from Southmead Hospital are to become welcome new additions to our TV screens in the third series of BBC Two’s documentary, An Hour to Save Your Life.
The programme explores the critical decisions facing doctors in the first hour of care, following the treatment of patients from the initial 999 call.
Over last winter, a BBC crew followed courageous paramedics and doctors from the Great Western Air Ambulance Charity and the trauma team based at Southmead Hospital.
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Some of the eye-opening moments to be seen from Southmead are to include a young woman suffering head injuries from a road traffic collision, as well as a horse rider sustaining serious injuries from a fall.
Lead emergency medicine consultant, Dr Leilah Dare, who features in the second episode broadcast on BBC Two at 9pm on Tuesday, August 16, said: “Working in the Emergency Department we see a diverse range of patients and reasons for them being here.
“We do not know who will come through the doors of the hospital when we start a shift and have to be ready for anything.”
The North Bristol NHS Trust has reported the highest survival rates of any Major Trauma Centre in England, with Southmead Hospitals’ emergency department taking care of patients’ life threatening injuries from across the South West.
Dr Ben Walton from the Major Trauma Centre said: “An Hour To Save Your Life has been a great opportunity for us to demonstrate the work of our Major Trauma service at North Bristol NHS Trust and how the different teams here work together to give patients the very best chance of survival when they have suffered multiple injuries that could lead to death or serious disability.”
The BBC Two four-part series follows several major trauma centres in the UK with Southmead Hospital and the Great Western Air ambulance charity featuring in episodes two and three.
Watch the series on catch-up here
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