Casualty 24/7 - Season 6

Return of the documentary following the work of emergency teams in the A&E department of Barnsley Hospital. A two-year-old with dangerously low blood sugar is rushed in. Caring for her is Paediatric Sister Kate Ellis, who reveals what it feels like when a child is brought in. Junior doctor Jake Mullen assesses 44-year-old Kay, who arrives at the hospital with flu-like symptoms. He runs the risk of contracting a highly contagious strain of flu while treating her.

Cameras follow Barnsley Hospital's Casualty department as they work together to help the ill and injured of South Yorkshire. There's a bedside view of heart attacks, road traffic collisions and allergic reactions and we see the team as they treat multiple injuries caused by objects ranging from chainsaws to tractors and everything in between.

Barnsley Hospital's casualty department is in the middle of one of the worst storms in decades. Nurse Chloe treats 88-year-old Enid, who has been knocked over by high-speed winds and has a severe open head wound. She needs to assess Enid quickly in case she's suffered a head trauma. Meanwhile, consultant doctor Mason and registrar doctor Staunton meet 44-year-old Darren. He has been rushed in suffering from severe chest pains and a rapid heartbeat.

Sister Vicky battles a doctor shortage and a high influx of walk-in patients - a perfect storm that means she needs to call on her years of experience to keep the shift on track. Seventy-year-old Fred is blue-lighted in having suffered a serious fall at home, but with a shortage of doctors in the department, he's taken straight for an urgent x-ray after which he's transferred to the care of Dr Tom Hawthorne.

At Barnsley Hospital, Sister Jane helps a man who has been arrested for being drunk and disorderly - despite being verbally abused by him. Meanwhile, volunteer Jane steps in and supports the team by caring for a young man who is showing signs of drug misuse.

When a key member of staff calls in sick at the last minute, Sister Rachael's dream of a smooth shift disappears. Instead, she has to manage a department overflowing with patients, and struggle with staff shortages, meaning longer waiting times, and no available beds. After having fallen down the stairs the night before, 44-year-old Gavin woke up with a sore neck. He walked himself into A&E, but was immediately put into a neck brace and rushed into radiology. The results shocked even the most experienced consultant treating him. It's Betty's 90th birthday, but rather than celebrate it at home, she's cut her finger and it won't stop bleeding. And two-year-old Lottie has fallen over at nursery, leaving mum Emma convinced that something sharp is lodged in her foot — will the doctor find anything? And 62-year-old Sandra suffers from a longterm, excruciating condition that means she's been into A&E more than 40 times. Dr Reddy admits that he and his colleagues sometimes feel helpless not being able to do more for those patients who have chronic ailments. Over in resus, 51-year-old Claire has had an accident while out walking her two dogs. The elbow is one of the most painful joints to dislocate, but hers is more complicated than usual. The doctors need to quickly discover the best method of getting it back in place, without causing her even more pain.

Every bed in the department is occupied, but there are still 20 patients waiting for the next one to be vacated. Lead Nurse Steph is already struggling to manage the mounting number of patients when the emergency alarm sounds and all available staff must head to resus to help a fitting patient.

It's another gruelling shift for the team at Barnsley Hospital's casualty department. Juggling a backlog of walk-in patients and a constant stream of new ambulance emergencies, they're struggling to keep waiting times down. In the hospital car park, paramedics rush to help 67-year-old Pauline who's fallen out of her car after getting her foot tangled in her handbag strap. Advanced clinical practitioner Chantelle immediately takes her to resus and discovers the fall has resulted in a serious injury. Chantelle's next patient is 83-year-old Melvyn, who's been rushed in with a deadly infection. She needs to assess Melvyn quickly and find the source of his potential sepsis. The next emergency is assigned to Dr Chris, who's being shadowed by junior doctor Sophie. They're treating 55-year-old Tracey in the high-dependency unit after she was rushed in with severe breathing problems. Tracey had a double lung transplant seven years ago, so it's vital the team get to the bottom of her condition before she deteriorates any further. And in the assessment hub, still battling a full waiting room, Sister Jane examines 75-yearold John's hand after a fall. His finger is badly damaged and needs an X-ray to determine if it needs surgery. But first, his ring, a family heirloom, needs to be cut off.

A 17-year-old arrives after falling from his bike and suffering a fit. Consultant Liz needs to find out if a broken neck is the cause of his arm numbness. In the hub, Sister Jane is struggling to manage the high volume of patients, not just those arriving by ambulance, but walk-ins too. One such walk-in is Johnathan, a 41-year-old recovering addict, who has infected ulcers on both legs.

It's another busy day for the casualty team with patient numbers unusually high. Sister Rachel is running the shift, and she's under pressure with a shortage of cubicles - to make matters worse, IT systems start to fail across the hospital, causing chaos for patient flow. Urgent treatment is needed for 75-year-old Janet, who's been viciously attacked by a dog and has a large flap of skin hanging from her elbow.

A former miner is brought in as he is struggling to breathe, while Sister Jane is battling a seemingly never-ending stream of emergency patients in the hub. Eighty-four-year-old Anthony has a suspected broken shoulder but, as he is also the carer of his vulnerable wife, Clinical Practitioner Chantelle needs to balance what is best for her patient with his caring duties at home.

There are no available beds in Barnsley Hospital's A&E department, while lead nurse Kelly is struggling with a backlog of ambulances waiting with patients needing treatment. In Resus, 86-year-old Grahame has been rushed in with severe chest pains and blood in his mucus and after assessing him, Dr Staunton needs a conversation with him - in private.

Advanced clinical practitioner Chantelle orders an urgent CT scan to asssess whether 79-year-old John has sustained any brain damage after falling at home and cracking his head. To complicate matters, John has a large cancerous growth on his cheek that has also been caught during the fall.

It is Hannah's first day in her new role of matron, but the department is completely full, there's no movement and patients just keep on arriving.

The first heatwave of summer has hit Barnsley, adding to the pressure of an already stressful day in casualty for sister Jane, who is in charge. Sixty-five-year-old Theresa arrives by ambulance and paramedics suspect she has had a stroke, but her condition suddenly deteriorates and it's up to physician associate Wayne and Dr Laura to get to the bottom of her condition quickly.

A woman who is 18-weeks pregnant collapses in the toilets and is rushed straight to resus, where registrar Eamonn urgently needs to work out if she is at risk from a clot on her lung or a problem with the muscle in her heart. Advanced clinical practitioner Chantelle treats a 91-year-old woman who had a fall at home and has a nasty cut to her head.