Ambulance: S04E02

TX DATE:
THURSDAY 25 OCTOBER 2018

TX TIME:
21:00

NETWORK:
BBC One

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A Dragonfly Film and Television production for BBC One

NARRATOR
Christopher Eccleston

DIRECTOR
Nick Mattingly

SERIES PRODUCER
Harjeet Chhokar/ Peter Wallis-Tayler

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Kirsty Cunningham / Simon Ford / Pamela Gordon / Zoe Callan

During a 12-hour night shift with North West England Ambulance Service, call handler Elly tackles an increasing volume of calls, and there are surprises for paramedics April and Clare.

This second episode of the fourth series joins the team at the start of a 12-hour night shift, just as a mother in distress is calling for help to her 19-year-old daughter who is self-harming.  Paramedics April and Clare are one of 96 crews on duty across Greater Manchester for the night, and they are immediately dispatched.  As they approach they are relieved to see the police are in attendance in front of them.  When they arrive to treat the patient they immediately set out to reassure and calm her and work out the most suitable place for her to go, hoping to avoid heading to Accident & Emergency.

While April and Clare try to find the young woman a better place for the night, the calls continue to pour in.  Advanced paramedic Luke is dispatched to a nine-year-old boy who is feared to be in the process of suffering a cardiac arrest.  Luke has specialist training for the most serious cases - he arrives to find a family in distress and a child moving in and out of consciousness.  With his patient stabilised, Luke is quickly dispatched to his next job - a five-year-old hit by a car.

Meanwhile crewmates Gina and Jimmy are treating a 12-year-old who has had an accident at judo.  Jimmy soon puts his patient at ease with tales from his own family life.  In Control the flow of calls is relentless, and we find Elly taking a call for a lady who believes she has swallowed some bleach.

Back on the scene with April and Clare and their self-harming patient, The Sanctuary - the one resource that might provide an alternative to to Accident & Emergency - returns their call only to reveal that they are unable to help out tonight. This leaves the crew with no choice but to take their patient to Accident & Emergency.

In control, call handler Debbie is on the line to family of a patient in labour - paramedic crew Chris and Chris are the closest crew to the patient, and there is race on between whether the baby or the crew arrive first.

The jobs waiting are stacking up.  Call assessor Elly is on the line to a relative who has already been waiting for an ambulance for over an hour.  With no ambulances available Elly must stay on the telephone line to try to calm and reassure them - a task that takes a toll on her own emotions.  After waiting nearly two hours an ambulance is found, but her relief is temporary as the very next call is less than friendly.

It's on to the next patient for Gina and Jimmy, who are dispatched to a patient who has been waiting for approximately three hours for an ambulance.  The patient is suffering with back pain, but after some pain relief he is pleased to make the trip to hospital.

April and Clare continue their night when a call comes into the control room from Accident & Emergency to report that a patient has absconded.  It turns out to be their self-harming patient from earlier that night, and they are dispatched to help her.  Once again they persuade her to go to Accident & Emergency despite it being potentially unsuitable for her needs - this encourages  Clare to reveal her own personal struggles with anxiety caused by a previous relationship.

As dawn breaks the jobs begin to wind down for some crews, but the calls keep on coming for advanced paramedic Luke.  He is dispatched to 19-year-old in labour.  Just as Luke arrives to the property the baby is born, leaving Luke to arrive to help cut the cord and place the baby in her mum's arms for the first time.