Island Hospital

In episode one, surgeon and pilot David Pring shows us why some patients receive a flying visit, hospital chef Wilkie embarks on an ambitious ice-cream wedding cake for a nurse’s wedding and hotelier Michael finds out whether he can continue work after falling down the stairs. Outpatients at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital live within a 120-mile radius on six different islands, so seeing a doctor can be an unusual affair. For more than 20 years, Mr David Pring has been both a qualified surgeon and a fully licensed pilot. This means he’s able to serve the community efficiently by flying himself to house calls. Tonight, David flies to Alderney – the most Northern of the Channel Islands – to see 82 year-old pensioner Robin, who has fallen at home and damaged his left hip. David explains: “It’s the most efficient way to get around if you can fly yourself. Otherwise you’re heavily dependent on the commercial flights and they don’t always fit in with clinic times.” Over 300,000 tourists visit Guernsey each year, most during the peak summer months. Michael is the manager of Bella Luce, a boutique hotel on Guernsey but has ended up in Accident and Emergency during the hotel’s busiest season. After a bad fall, Michael has a very bruised and swollen shoulder. Dr Brian Parkin sends him for an X-ray but how will the Bella Luce cope with Michael out of action? Of the 66,000 residents in Guernsey, 20,000 are imports - tradesmen and industry specialists brought over from the mainland to help serve the community. Neil Wilkie, the hospital chef, learned his trade in London at Michelin starred restaurants but moved to Guernsey for a change in lifestyle. He and his team now serve up the best quality food to the Princess Elizabeth Hospital patients. He says: “This is actually sirloin steak, sliced up for braising because we like to give the best quality we can to our patients. They can choose what they like because that’s what we do. Most of the

Tonight, 37-year-old Richard gets a shock to his system to regulate his heartbeat, Bethan comes home to Guernsey from Indonesia to give birth to her second child and physiotherapist Kitty helps businessman Chris to ride a bike again after he suffered a stroke. Richard visits Accident and Emergency for the fifth time in 18 months because he suffers from episodes of an irregular heartbeat. He's at risk of a stroke or even heart failure if the heart doesn't go back into its normal rhythm but the treatment is potentially very dangerous. Dr Matt Dorian, who will have to give Richard an electric shock to momentarily stop his heart before restarting it again explains: “It’s not done lightly and we need to be sure that the patient either needs it because they’re very unwell or because it’s the only treatment that will get them successfully back into a normal rhythm.” Over 600 babies are born in Guernsey and the surrounding islands each year, almost all of whom come into the world at the Princess Elizabeth Hospital’s maternity unit. Bethan lives with her husband on a rural Indonesian island where there are few medical facilities. She has travelled back to Guernsey to be with her family and friends to have her second child, worried that the birth will be as problematic as her first. Ten days overdue, Bethan goes to see Consultant Heather Reid who suggests a Caesarean section the following day. But Bethan’s baby has other plans and that night Bethan goes into labour... Specialist neurological physiotherapist Kitty has worked on Guernsey for 13 years. Tonight, she helps Chris, who suffered a sudden stroke two and a half years ago, to learn to ride a bike once more. Once a fit and active company director, Chris unexpectedly collapsed on his bedroom floor and within twenty minutes had lost the use of his left side completely. Kitty recalls how when she first started seeing Chris he required two people just to help him stand up. Kitty has taught Chris to

In tonight’s episode, eye surgeon Suzy Dorey swaps her scrubs for gardening gear as she helps Saumarez Park prepare for a Royal Visit; Paramedics Jason Garnham and Nick Davison come to the rescue of bowls champion Derek Hurford; And a shoulder injury could spell disaster for lawyer Adrian Sarchet, as he embarks on an attempt to swim the English Channel.

In tonight’s episode, Paramedic Jason Garnham leaves his ambulance behind for a training mission at sea; Emergency Medical Technician Dean Robilliard is called into action when a patient injured on Alderney needs to be airlifted to the Princess Elizabeth; The emergency services prepare for battle in the St Peter Port harbour carnival raft race. And will physiotherapist Millie Rayner be able to get keen horticulturist Jean McCathie back to her garden after a bout of pneumonia?