Original subtitles

WOMAN ON PHONE: Ambulance. What's the emergency?

WOMAN: Quickly. We're at Southport. OK. At Southport.

VOICEOVER: The Gold Coast -

where the lights burn bright and the sunshine never ends.

While many Aussies call it home,

every year, 12 million tourists come to play

on this stretch of golden coastline.

WOMAN: He was surfing when he got bitten on both legs by a shark.

I don't think I'm going to the sea again.

But the good times can often turn ugly.

MAN: I want the pelvic binder on him, OK?

And when they do...

She's not breathing.

..these are the people you want on your side.

Nothing that we can't fix, sweetheart, alright?

(BABY SCREAMS)

I'm still very concerned about this man.

There's nothing like Ebola.

Whether you're just visiting or you live here...

Mu baby's life is going to be cut shorter because of this.

They don't want to see me die.

She can't be replaced.

..these are the real stories...

Hey, I love you too, buddy.

..of the cutting-edge medical teams...

WOMAN: Do not move your head.

We need to go in and get that clot out straightaway.

Good work, guys.

..who pick you up...

MAN: OK, just keep moving.

It's the best job I've done, anyway. Nailing things.

..patch you up...

It's a superpower!

The fairy dust.

It's very magical and it fixes all sorts of things.

..and put you back in paradise.

Tonight on Gold Coast Medical -

brain surgery results in a miracle right before your eyes...

We've got this very narrow window of opportunity

where we can go in, keep that side of the brain alive.

..and the patient is wide awake.

WOMAN: Keep very still for us. Do not move at all.

A young girl struck down by a mystery illness.

It's coming from my brain and that's the scary part.

Tense moments during a waterbirth...

(SQUEALING)

..when a newborn plays a game of hide and seek.

He's under there somewhere, lovely.

And Bruce needs to brush up on his carpentry skills.

Putting some wood together - dang, dang, dang -

and then...yeah.

Nailed it in.

(UP-TEMPO POP INSTRUMENTAL)

Thanks very much.

Have a great day. We'll see you guys later.

Doctors Hal Rice and Laetitia de Villiers

are two of the hospital's specialist neuroradiologists

who work together as a team.

Laetitia's fantastic, great to work with,

cool under pressure and, you know,

you couldn't have a better person to be working with.

He's really difficult to work with. No, I'm just kidding.

He is great to work with.

Hal's completely casual.

He likes to come in in his thongs, board shorts, t-shirt.

Obviously, doesn't look as glamorous as Dr de Villiers

but, you know, it's comfort.

I love absolutely fabulous shoes.

Oh, these are one of my favourites.

They're actually really comfortable.

And, of course, it's so...

And she goes from wearing that to this.

So, this is the great leveller.

She can turn up in Louis Vuitton shoes

and she's still gotta wear these all day when she's operating,

so I love it.

The reason for Hal and Laetitia's double act in the operating theatre

is the complex demands of their specialty -

neuro-interventional radiology.

So, a neuro-interventionist is a specialist

that works with blood vessels in the brain

and blood vessels in the spine.

You can actually navigate along the inside of these arteries

using a road map,

and, from the inside of the arteries,

you can treat various problems in the brain like a brain aneurysm

or a stroke.

This type of procedure, and the equipment used,

is very much a development of the 21st century.

We use this really high technologically advanced equipment

which is quite bulky

and it can be a little intimidating to patients.

So, what we like to do is make the room as comfortable as we can.

(MUSIC PLAYS)

Some of the operating theatre's computer power

is used for a task that isn't medical

but is therapeutic.

Well, that is if you like Metallica.

(MUSIC PLAYS)

We like having music on in the background

because it relaxes everybody.

We put anything on that the patient likes to listen to.

(MUSIC CONTINUES)

When the patients are brought into the operating room,

it certainly relaxes them,

'cause it is a major thing

for a patient to undergo this form of surgery.

Completing the rock'n'roll mood is a light show

brought in and created by the team's resident gadget geek, Michael.

Michael's our head radiographer.

He has an absolute predilection for LED lights and lasers,

and so we always have some kind of interesting laser on the ceiling.

(SONG CONTINUES)

Just after 11:00 in the morning

and the team's first procedure is finished.

And Michael's ready for the next music request.

Black Keys or Rolling Stones. Yep. Sure.

Thank you.

(MUSIC PLAYS)

I'd rather have... put The Black Keys on.

But Laetitia is about to lose control of the playlist

when she takes a call from the emergency department.

Call you back in a second. What's his name?

A young man has been rushed into emergency,

suffering sudden total paralysis down the entire left side of his body.

Hal... Yep.

TOT retrieval in a 27-year-old. Wow. Where's the...? Where is it?

They are in emergency.

CT scans sent through to Laetitia by the emergency department

show a massive blood clot deep in the man's brain.

There you go. You can see it.

So, I might call 'em on and tell them to bring it...

Straight up. For him to come straight up, hey?

The longer the clot blocks blood flow,

the more of the man's brain tissue will die.

Oh, Lyn, it's Laetitia. Is Dr Sabet still there?

He became completely weak on his left side of the body,

left arm, left leg, about two hours ago,

so he's got a large clot within one of the major blood vessels

to the right side of the brain

and, really, we need to go in and get that clot out straightaway.

As the team prepare to work on the man,

news comes through of a complication that will result in even more risks

for this young patient.

Not so good.

I'm glad I'm not pushing it out.

You couldn't handle it, honey.

Kyra and Jimmy are having a baby.

For the past six, seven years, I've been working underground

in mining, so it's always been a fly in/fly out,

so I've missed all the classes.

It's...are you alright? Mmhmm.

To be more accurate, Kyra and Jimmy are having a baby right now.

I'm alright. Keep talking.

It's not gonna stop 'cause you stopped talking.

I sort of figured that.

We've had comments about this one catching baby.

I'm sorry, we've got midwives who know what they're doing.

Just please, for the love of God, let them do their job,

so that the baby doesn't get dropped 'cause I did not come this far

to have someone drop the baby and I know how slippery they are.

After spending the last couple of hours labouring at home,

and a final cuddle by Kyra's young daughter, Bella,

it's time to make the mad dash to the hospital.

I love you.

I met Bella when she was three.

Do you want to drive out?

I see Bella as my own anyway and treat her like my own daughter.

Alright. Let's go have this baby.

It's getting ridiculous. At least it's a nice view.

The only birthing that I've seen has been on the farm,

so it's only livestock.

So, come on in. This is your bed suite.

Yay.

My gosh, this looks better than my house.

Thankfully, they'll have midwife Ellen McLean

lending a helping hand wherever needed.

Unlike the rest of the hospital,

essentially, we have well women, we have well families.

We don't always deal with people that are sick,

and so the atmosphere is always,

"Ooh, you've come to have a baby with us. Yay."

So, you got a little girl or a little boy at home?

A little girl.

A little girl. And this one is a...

Something that hasn't got four legs. A surprise. OK.

Just a surprise.

Jimmy doesn't know much when it comes to women having babies.

But he does know Kyra doesn't want it to happen in the bath.

She was talking about on all fours.

OK. Yeah. As a possibility.

But... So, are you catching a baby today?

No. No.

I have every faith in you as a midwife.

He doesn't need to be in here. Right you are.

For sure. You're at the top end, are you?

Yeah.

Just take a deep breath in and out again.

I've had a few wriggles on the way here.

Nice.

I'm hoping for a little boy.

It would be nice to have a boy and a girl.

Baby's moved down. That's nice. Oh, good.

So, you're not keen on an actual waterbirth,

just being in there for water immersion is the main thing

for pain relief there.

Great. OK.

Give me your hand.

Kyra's contractions are getting stronger and closer together.

Same spot?

So, Jimmy does his best to ease her through the pain.

Were you paying attention when Mum showed you the massage techniques?

Not a great deal.

If I can keep her as calm as possible,

and just do as I'm told, really.

I'm just there for show, I think.

As things start to heat up, at least Jimmy looks the part.

I made sure he brought his board shorts.

Yeah, I can see that. Yeah.

Very sexy.

That just seems incredibly uncomfortable.

Are you right there?

Yep.

As for his usefulness, only time will tell.

Yeah, I've got it all charted up now, yeah, yeah.

Doctor Scott Paget trained right here on the Gold Coast.

I don't have any medical family members.

My mother's a teacher and my dad worked in business.

And I almost stumbled into medicine.

I had a lot of premedical colleagues

and, all of a sudden,

I started growing an affinity for what they were doing

and I just saw the passion that they had.

So, he swapped bio-engineering for medicine and couldn't be happier

working across the busy emergency departments.

You've got absolutely no idea what's going to happen.

You know, it can lead to quite an exciting day.

And waiting for him in minor injuries today

is construction worker Bruce.

Best job I've done, anyway, for nailing things.

At his bedside is his mate, John,

who also happens to be his health and safety officer.

I'll probably still go back to work today.

Yeah, it might be a broom from now on.

G'day. Bruce is it? Yeah, mate.

How you going? I'm Scott, one of the doctors.

How you going, Scott? Nice to meet you.

What's happened here today?

Putting some wood together - dang, dang, dang -

and then, yeah, nailed it in.

Had me finger too close.

Yeah, dumb thing to do, I know.

But, yeah, and I nailed it.

Alright, well, what we're gonna do

is we're gonna get you in, have an X-ray,

and then, once we've had a look at all of that,

then we'll see what we can do, get things sorted for ya,

get that out of there.

Yep. Perfect. Alright.

Be back to see you in a little bit. Alright. No worries.

An X-ray will show the team exactly what damage the nail has done.

I'm off.

A young man suffering a massive stroke

has thrown doctors Hal and Laetitia into emergency mode.

And, to complicate things even further,

he has a pre-existing heart condition.

His heart muscle is very dilated and it doesn't contract properly

and that's probably where the clot that's gone to his brain

has come from.

When he's wheeled into the operating theatre,

he is close to death.

And, with his heart function operating at just 10%,

the anaesthetist believes

that, if they administer a general anaesthetic,

it could kill him.

No. No, no, no.

Look, we love doing the stroke under GA to keep them still,

but, because of his cardiac condition,

we have to do him awake, yeah.

WOMAN: So, Phil... Yep.

You need to stay absolutely still for us.

So, the young man will be wide awake during his procedure.

We're good to do it awake but we just want to do it ASAP.

Well, that changes the day.

We got this very narrow window of opportunity

where we can go in, remove that clot, open up that blood vessel,

restore blood supply to that side of the brain

and keep that side of the brain alive.

We need your help for this, OK?

And you're gonna help us by keeping as absolutely still as you can.

Yeah.

I know it's tough.

We're gonna just move you up in the bed

and we're gonna start this procedure, OK?

Tonight in Seven News

THE WANTED: # You'll find us chasing the sun

# Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh # Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

# Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh

# You'll find us chasing the sun

# Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh... #

Now, are you able to roll your hand over the other way?

Beautiful. Just hold that there.

In minor injuries, construction worker Bruce

has scored a direct hit

through the bone of his index finger with a nail gun.

Luckily, the nail missed the joint.

But it has passed through the bone marrow,

where an infection could cost him his finger.

# You'll find us chasing the sun. #

Bruce's workmate, John, is also the workplace health and safety officer

so he makes sure he's got a photo of what not to do.

Oh, yeah.

Yeah, no, that's pretty cool.

Yeah, something that shouldn't be there.

The job of removing the nail

falls to orthopaedic registrar Dr Henry Can.

The only tools the team will need for this procedure

are a decent pair of pliers and some painkiller.

Peace pipe.

They've just given you one of them to shut you up, mate.

You got it.

Alright, Bruce. It's your time to shine.

As well as the happy gas,

Bruce has been given a nerve-blocking injection.

Gonna start. Don't move. WOMAN: Good man.

Nice, slow breaths.

You're doing really well.

With just a thin layer of bone on either side,

one wrong move could snap Bruce's index finger like a twig.

That's it. Nice, slow breaths. MAN: Is it coming out?

Yep. You're doing really well.

You're doing really well.

Nice, long, slow breaths.

The nail is well and truly stuck.

Doing well there, Bruce.

And, with every attempt, a fracture becomes more likely.

You're doing really well, alright? Good man.

No-nonsense couple Kyra and Jimmy are deep in labour

with their first baby together.

I've always been a bit, like, waterbirth - icky.

I don't really want stuff floating around me, essentially.

But, just in case there is a floater,

midwife Ellen is prepared.

It's a pooper scooper.

So, we scoop it and then...

See? It's for floaties.

Nearly there, darling.

Nearly there.

What I want you to be doing is feeling.

Feel what's happening down there and what's going to happen

and then go with that.

And I've got the outside covered.

I knew I always wanted to be a nurse back when I was 17.

I did apply to the Royal Brisbane Hospital

and I was accepted but, unfortunately,

'cause I had an estranged relationship with my mother,

she got the letter but she didn't let me know

that I'd been accepted into nursing, so I didn't know.

I became a nurse in 2007

and then, in 2010, I became a midwife.

That's a girl. Good, long, deep breaths.

It's been the best experience of my life

and it was definitely where I needed to be.

You don't have to ever have a working day in your life

if you do something you love - isn't that what they say?

Every contraction is a different one.

Every one that you knocked out will be the last one of its kind.

Ellen discreetly uses a mirror to see how far the labour has progressed.

From what she can see, it won't be long now.

(MOANING)

Which means a waterbirth is the only option.

You're OK, sweet pea. You're OK.

And how about you lift this arm up for me now?

OK. So, no movement in this left arm at all, hey?

27-year-old Phil has suffered a massive stroke

and is totally paralysed down the left side of his body.

But there's more threatening his survival

than just the blood clot choking his brain.

The problem is that he has a bad cardiac failure,

so heart failure, which makes the procedure a lot more difficult

for us 'cause we can't do a general anaesthetic,

and it's also very tricky for the anaesthetists.

And there's a lot of risks associated with it

and it's actually quite dangerous.

Gotta keep very still for us now, OK?

It's a message they have to keep repeating.

You're gonna help us by keeping as absolutely still as you can, OK?

If Phil moves even a tiny bit

while Hal and Laetitia are working in his brain,

permanent brain damage could leave him paralysed.

Gotta keep really still there, Phil. Turn the lights off, thanks.

With their game faces on,

Hal and Laetitia fit a catheter line up the femoral artery in Phil's groin

all the way into his head.

So, this is right ICA, guys.

Biplane on, guys. Biplane on.

Biplane on. WOMAN: Biplane...

Phil, you can't move your head now, OK?

Need you to keep your head very still for me, keep very still.

Do not move. Well done.

I know that's a really hot flush on the right side of your face there.

That's the X-ray guy going in, OK?

A squirt of dye into Phil's brain paints a catastrophic picture.

Big right MCA thrombus, hey?

Huge clot. Massive.

No...not much blood supply to the right side of his brain at all.

Wow, look at that. It's out of control.

It's pretty impressive.

The clot is not going to be easy to reach.

That mass is the clot blocking blood supply,

which is why so many of the arteries are not visible.

So, the branch that we're trying to get into

has got a very tight-angle curvature on it to get into it, so...

It's just a little tricky to get round that corner,

which is what we're doing at the moment.

We're just pushing a little bit there.

I know your head's hurting.

Phil is having to endure the weirdest intrusive pain you can imagine

and remain completely still.

That's him. That's perfect.

That's it. Right on the clot. Yep.

Yeah.

WOMAN: Nice and still now, Phil. Nice and still, OK?

Keep your head straight.

Hal is ready to pull the clot out.

Any head movement from Phil as the stent is dragged from his brain

could cause a trail of damage.

We're just getting to this clot in your brain.

You need to keep very still for us. Do not move at all.

This is really important.

Don't move. Keep very still now.

But he just won't lie still so Hal can make his move.

So, we're gonna pull now.

This might give a little bit of dural irritation.

Every second that the clot is in place, Phil's brain is dying.

This is gonna hurt.

(POP MUSIC PLAYS)

In minor injuries, Dr Can has a problem.

He can't get a grip on the nail Bruce has shot through his index finger.

Permanent damage to his finger could hurt Bruce's ability to earn a living

as a construction worker.

WOMAN: You're doing really well, alright?

MAN: Slow and steady. Win the race.

Slow, deep breaths.

That's it. Just all the way out with your breathing.

Good man.

Nice, slow...it's gone. There we go.

Done. It's all done.

Bruce, check this out. Yeah.

Did you feel it, mate?

Just take a few more puffs for me, please.

The nail is gone but it could have left an infection inside the bone.

How do you feel about staying overnight for hospital

for a bit of antibiotics anyway,

given that it's gone through your bones?

No, I don't think I will.

LUNCHMONEY LEWIS: # I got bills I gotta pay

# So I'm gon work work work every day. #

Another X-ray clears him of a fracture.

Looks pretty good.

And Bruce can't wait to get back on the tools.

I thought it would be, yeah, go straight back to work, you know?

You know, that's what I get.

I should've just pulled it out at work and went back to work.

See ya later, bloke.

And the experience might make him a little more cautious with his aim.

# So I'm gon make sure everybody eats. #

WOMAN ON PHONE: Ambulance. What's the town or suburb of the emergency?

MAN: Uh, Nerang.

There's been a car crash.

He's spun out of control and he's bleeding from his head.

MAN: Please. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.

Such is the extent of the young driver's injuries...

MAN: High blood pressure. Any medical conditions?

..the ambulance officers call for back-up

and critical care paramedic Andrew Busby, or Buzz...

6692.

..rushes to the scene.

(MACHINE BEEPS)

A critical care paramedic is a one-man band.

(HORN BLARES)

As a single officer response, obviously, I do work alone.

I wouldn't have it any other way, to be honest.

I've been doing it that long now,

I don't know how I'd go with somebody else.

My role is to predominantly back up other crews.

I can be moved fairly quickly from one job to the other.

It's really good.

Buzz has been warned the crash is a bad one.

Judging by the damage,

the vehicle was going too quick for a suburban street.

Buzz swings into action.

Let's get the collar on, buddy.

Don't worry about that. Let's get the collar on.

When the car hit a large tree...

Where are you hurting, mate? Everywhere.

Everywhere. I'm sorry.

..24-year-old Jordan's head smashed into the windscreen.

Keep your hands down, mate. Keep your hands down.

Keep your hands down.

Don't choke me. We're not choking you, buddy.

We're just trying to keep your head nice and still.

At this stage, Buzz and his colleagues

have no idea what they're dealing with.

What's going on, buddy?

At best, a skull fracture.

At worst, a broken neck or brain injury.

(MOANING) I'm sorry.

Basically, we just want to get him out

where we can have a bit of a look at him.

But right now getting him out is impossible.

The driver's door won't budge

and Jordan is trapped in the wreck of his car.

No...not much blood supply to the right side of his brain at all.

In this procedure, which has never been filmed,

specialist radiologist Hal Rice

is about to pull a giant blood clot out of a young man's brain

using a grabbing tool on the end of a fine wire.

But there's a problem.

Uh, drop the resolution. Just low-res is fine for this bit.

WOMAN: You're doing really well, buddy.

27-year-old Phil won't lie still.

We're just getting to this clot in your brain.

You need to keep very still for us. Do not move at all.

This is really important.

Phil's heart is too weak to survive a general anaesthetic.

Don't move. Keep very still now.

So, we're gonna pull now.

This might give a little bit of dural irritation.

This is gonna hurt, OK?

WOMAN: ..really well, buddy.

Hal must choose the right moment to draw out the catheter,

or he'll inflict crippling drag damage on Phil's brain.

LAETITIA: It's tight.

And it's out.

The clot is a monster,

the biggest stroke maker the team has ever seen.

And its removal has an instant effect.

This is how the blood vessels in the right side of Phil's brain

looked with the clot in.

And this is how they look now.

Oh, open. Fully open.

Perfect. OK. So, it's open.

Very soft clot. Yeah.

It went really well. It went really, really well.

It's one of the best things we can do.

I just want to see this guy move both his legs and arms now.

Moments later, a miracle.

He's moving.

He's starting to move his left foot which is good.

Oh, well done. Good work, guys.

Less than half an hour ago,

Phil was completely paralysed down his left side.

It's my wife and kids.

I don't see them as much as I should and I would love to

but I've got a major passion with the work that I do

and commitment to that and seeing people doing well

like Phil and the other patients which we help every day,

it keeps you going.

(GENTLE PIANO MUSIC)

It's gone really well. We're very happy with the result.

We've managed to get all the clot out.

The big question will be how much brain damage there is

and how much will recover.

We're hoping, looking at the images that we've done,

that he will actually make a full recovery,

but we'll probably only know for the next few days.

So, for Phil, the next 48 hours are crucial.

Nyree is a 26-year-old animal lover who works at Dreamworld.

I've always wanted to work with animals.

I knew I didn't want to just sit at a desk.

So, yeah, all the animal handling,

interactive parts are the best, obviously.

Come on.

While she might look like a picture of health,

there are sinister signs that illness

may take away the lifestyle that she loves.

I remembered the morning I realised I couldn't hear.

I was, like, dizzy and it was, like, a hearing loss thing in one ear.

I know that my balance isn't quite as good as it used to be.

The latest in a series of mysterious ailments

is numbness in her right arm and shoulder.

Desperate for answers,

she sought the help of neurologist Arman Sabet

at Gold Coast University Hospital.

Oh, right.

So, has the numbness changed at all? Any improvement?

It's still there on my shoulder.

This doesn't feel as bad, the tingling.

Doctor Sabet believes the numbness is caused by

a malfunction in Nyree's central nervous system...

Bend your elbows like this.

..that could be a crippling degenerative disease.

You can just lie there. That's alright.

Inflammation of the lining around the nerves,

can involve the brain or the spinal cord.

We really don't know exactly why that happens

but there are certain populations

that the condition is more common in.

Young women, for example, fall into that category.

To get to the bottom of her problems,

the next step is an MRI scan of Nyree's brain.

We'll come and talk to you,

once we've had a chance to look at all the scans.

Is that OK? Yep.

OK. Bye-bye.

It's a frightening prospect for Nyree...

Heya.

..and her boyfriend, Luke.

Nyree and I have been together for about five years now

and we've done a lot of crazy things,

travelled around the world and done a lot of exciting stuff

in that five years, but this is probably one of the biggest hurdles

we've had to cross as a couple.

I mean, we roll with the punches.

I'm just the boyfriend,

so, as long as I keep her supported, she'll be fine.

It's just how Nyree handles it and she knows

that she's got her family and her loved ones around her.

I know that it's coming from my brain,

so I think that's the scary part.

(SIREN BLARES, HOSPITAL CHATTER)

SNOW PATROL: # A distant motorcade and suddenly there's joy. #

A waterbirth wasn't part of Kyra and Jimmy's birth plan

but here they are, a few contractions away

from meeting their first child together.

Slow it down. You need to be slower than that.

Big breath. Slower than that.

MAN: Just remember... Blow in and out.

Nuh.

I don't think we're very far.

Come on, you good thing.

Remember, I got you.

We've got no idea what the baby's actually going to be,

in regards to a boy or a girl.

Kyra loves the element of surprise there.

(STIFLED MOAN) Deep breath in and out.

And there comes a head.

Ready? Just gently, sweetheart.

I want you to be real soft. That's it.

Oh, goodness. Eyes, nose, mouth, chin.

Yay. Look at that.

Two arms and out he comes.

He's under there somewhere, lovely.

Come round. Come round. Pull him round.

KATY PERRY: # Unconditional... #

There you go. There you go, sweet.

Hey, bubba. There you go.

(SOFT CRY)

Yeah, baby.

There it is. Come on.

That's a girl.

Oh, my...

WOMAN: 52. 52.

A waterbirth.

There is something I never thought I was going to do.

# I will love you unconditionally. #

Being there for the moment a baby's born -

oh, my gosh.

There aren't words. There are so not words.

Every single one of them, your heart blows up and explodes

and that's the absolute truth.

And, as for the sex of the baby,

that's something that Jimmy can deliver.

We've got a little boy.

We got a boy? Oh!

It's been a long time since

I've actually had any interaction with newborns.

Hard to know what to expect other than what friends have told me

and some try and sugarcoat it and others just...yeah,

'You're in for torture' and that's it.

Lack of sleep, ra-ra-ra.

The joy that it can bring to someone's life,

that's the part I'm looking forward to.

Ooh, bubby.

That baby's too good.

It's so fabulous to see a woman who's not afraid in labour.

They're proud of themselves.

Now I'm good.

It's a humbling experience, I tell you.

It's just phenomenal to see them work their magic.

Are you gonna cut the cord, Jimmy?

Can you see where you're going?

Remember, it's like calamari. It's crunch, crunch.

You can hear it, can't you? Go again.

Is that free? That sounds good.

I'm done. Lovely.

Ellen, you deserve that cup of tea.

I do deserve the cup of tea, actually.

And the biscuits.

Uh, don't you love your job?

True...just can't love a job any more than this.

And we love the staff we work with.

Beautiful. Thanks, hun.

Always wanted to have a family.

Up until the last few years, it hasn't really been a big priority

and now that it's actually come together,

it'll certainly be one of

the highlights of my lifetime, that's for sure.

26-year-old Nyree

has been experiencing episodes of partial paralysis

for the last few months.

She's hoping an MRI scan on her brain

will explain why her nervous system keeps randomly shutting down.

Like any loving dad, Peter is sick with worry.

And today he's come along to discuss the results

with the hospital's professor of neurology.

Sorry if I'm a bit nervous but I am.

(SOFT CHUCKLE) That's OK.

Come on in. I'm Simon Broadley.

They've upped the ante.

We're now with Professor Broadley

who's the senior person in this area.

So, these are slices through your brain.

And, as you go up towards the top,

you start to see these little white spots

and you've got these little white spots in several places.

The white spots are areas of inflamed brain tissue called lesions

and they're permanent damage.

This is evidence this has been around for a little while.

That one looks big.

That looks like a particularly active lesion.

The lesions have the potential

to reduce Nyree's hearing, eyesight, mobility and memory.

So, you have this little lesion here which is probably the cause

of the recent symptoms you've had in your hand.

Oh, OK.

Yes. There's lots of them.

It's pretty clear to Professor Broadley just what's going on.

It's frightening news and it's not easy to deliver.

The fact that you've had what is now four episodes over sort of two years

is slightly concerning and also the number of lesions

and particularly how active the lesions are

on the brain scan is worrying.

That all points to you having multiple sclerosis.

(POIGNANT PIANO MUSIC)

So, what are your feelings?

Scared because it's such a big thing.

No-one in my family that we know of has ever had MS

so I never thought of it happening to me.

It's always a very tense and nervous time, finding out any new diagnosis,

but something like MS,

that most people have a vision in their mind of people in wheelchairs

and being severely affected.

It's a very worrying time.

It's been absolutely devastating, really.

The MS has just come out of left field

and this second attack was particularly severe,

so Nyree's been very ill and we're all concerned that, you know,

the disabilities are going to be permanent.

27-year-old Phil arrived in the neuro-interventional surgery suite

totally paralysed down his left side.

A massive clot had shut down blood supply to half his brain...

Wow, look at that.

It's pretty impressive.

..with a heart condition making a general anaesthetic too dangerous.

Specialist radiologists Hal and Laetitia

had to remove the clot with Phil fully conscious.

Don't move. Keep very still now.

Incredibly, Phil's brain started to come back online right away.

He's starting to move his left foot which is good.

Well done. Good work, guys.

A week later, Phil's mobility is returning.

Ready to arm-wrestle Wendell Sailor in a few weeks.

Yeah.

The muscle.

And, together with his parents,

he's asked to say a big thank you

to the pair who saved him from a lifetime of paralysis.

Hey, Phil. How are ya? How are you going, guys?

I'm Hal.

Yeah, I believe I owe you a big thank you.

Oh, no problem.

How are you, Ken and Karen? We talked to you on Thursday.

Yeah, nice to meet you again. Karen.

Met you guys last Thursday.

It was a little bit of a different story then.

I don't think you remember much of it.

And how have you been feeling? You been sleeping OK?

Yeah, sleeping awesome.

Good. Oh, good.

It is absolutely wonderful to make such a difference in somebody's life

and it's the difference between

somebody being either in a wheelchair

or completely paralysed down one side

to somebody who can function completely normally in society.

And I should say it is a team effort.

Like, we're just two members of the team and we've got a great team here

at the hospital.

It's certainly nice to see Phil doing well

and thankfully, you know, in a lot of these cases,

when we get the patient in time,

we're able to make a big difference to their lives.

And, a fortnight later, Phil's back on his feet

and taking his very first steps on the road to rehabilitation.

26-year-old Dreamworld animal handler Nyree

is still reeling from the news that she has multiple sclerosis.

Such a big thing.

And it's hit boyfriend Luke hard.

Very large level of shock.

How could it happen at such a young age?

But I think, you know, there's not much you can do about it.

Once you're diagnosed, that's it,

it's a matter of just dealing with it, so...

Keep going.

Yeah, she's truly amazing.

Very courageous. Inspiring. Yeah.

Thank you.

MS is a condition that will need to be managed for the rest of her life.

With someone like you, I think we should be looking at

something that's on the more effective side.

Just weeks ago,

a new treatment returning good results in Europe and America

was approved for use in Australia.

This new drug, Alemtuzumab,

it's not quite a one-hit drug but it's pretty close to it.

Doesn't quite cure the disease

but it certainly makes it very low in terms of activity

in the majority of people.

Unfortunately, Alemtuzumab comes with a long list of side effects.

It could destroy Nyree's thyroid gland, immune system, her kidneys

and also increase her risk of cancer.

Alemtuzumab does scare me a little bit.

If I do get some side effect,

then I'll be living with that for the rest of my life.

Nyree has no time to waste.

She must decide which treatment she will take

before another outbreak of lesions does further damage to her brain.

Don't choke me. We're not choking you, buddy.

We're just trying to keep your head nice and still.

Critical care paramedic Buzz is managing the care of a young driver

who hit a tree at speed.

High blood pressure. Any medical conditions?

No.

24-year-old Jordan's skull struck the windscreen on impact.

Exactly what injuries he's got is impossible to tell.

Buzz won't get a proper look

until the firies get the mangled door off.

We should be pretty right, mate, to just get him straight out of there.

So, we're gonna have to lift that up.

Sorry. You're right, buddy.

I'm really sorry.

It's alright, mate.

We're gonna have to lift the steering column up for me.

You got his head? We're gonna just shuffle his head.

Just bring his bottom round, guys. That's it, buddy.

Squeeze. Squeeze, squeeze, squeeze.

Right, his foot... Bring him up.

Please don't.

That's a shot.

I'm sorry, everyone.

OK, Rob, in.

I want his pants off and I want the pelvic binder on him, OK?

Rather than hand over to the ambulance crew,

Buzz will stay with Jordan all the way to the hospital.

Mate, you're in the back of an ambulance.

Hey, mate, just a heads up.

Coming in with a 25-year-old gentleman

who's a driver, a single-vehicle RTC, high impact.

(MACHINE BEEPING)

You're a very lucky boy.

MAN: Very lucky.

At the hospital,

it takes 17 staples to hold the top of Jordan's head together.

He ends up being cleared of a skull fracture

but he isn't cleared of a drink-driving charge.

This is a typical Saturday night.

Nothing spectacular, nothing, sort of, out of the ordinary.

It's, you know, it's a typical Saturday night on the Gold Coast.

Welcome.

We'll take you down to a nice, little area down the bottom here.

Yep.

To get you started.

Newly diagnosed MS patient 26-year-old Nyree

has made a tough condition about her medication.

Are you right to sit? Yep.

She's decided on a brand-new drug called Alemtuzumab

that will slow the degeneration of her nervous system.

It's day one of a five-day treatment.

I'm more worried about the long-term side effects.

But, after months of the illness and uncertainty,

Nyree's focused on the positives.

In a week's time, you start to feel really good.

So, I'm looking forward to that.

Mmhmm.

As soon as her treatment is over,

Nyree is back doing what she loves.

This is Maddie.

She's the one that needs a lot of training

and I haven't really been able to do it.

She can be quite a handful.

I didn't really have the confidence when I was feeling sick.

We're already seeing a lot of the signs

we could see before have gone.

So, it's good to see her getting back out there in the paddock,

going for a ride.

It is quite therapeutic for Nyree.

(LAUGHING)

I have heaps more energy now.

She was doing a lot of weekend horse events

and she hasn't done many for a while.

The goal is to get Nyree back doing shows.

You know, that'd be great.

While this is a major step in the right direction,

Nyree will need ongoing treatment every five years

to keep all MS symptoms and lesions at bay.

Before, I was just like, nuh, I don't want to do anything

but now I just feel good so that's heaps better.