TV series follows life-saving work of Sunderland and South Tyneside doctors volunteering for Great North Air Ambulance

Dr Phil Dowson and Dr Dave Bramley, who work at Sunderland Royal Hospital and South Tyneside District Hospital as emergency department consultants are to feature in series four of Emergency Helicopter Medics, which is being screened on More4 and streamed via Alll4.

The pair are volunteers for the Great North Air Ambulance and the series will show the two doctors dealing with emergency incidents, including cutting patients from a trapped car.

Dr Dowson, who leads his team in delivering resuscitation and emergency care and trains others within the Sunderland and South Tyneside NHS Trust, started his career in Sunderland 15 years before returning to Wearside in 2019 as a consultant.

He specialises in stabilising the sickest patients outside of hospital and transferring them to hospital quickly and safely.

Dr Dowson said: “The show gives a glimpse of some of the types of incidents that we and our air ambulance colleagues across the country respond to. This kind of show is great to help the public and our in-hospital colleagues see how we operate and in what challenging environments the ambulance services have to make their assessments and deliver patient care.

“As all of the air ambulance services featured in the show are entirely charity funded, the show is also great in raising the profile of the service and encourage people to fundraise for us if they wish. We hope people learn a lot about what we do as part of our jobs and see the difference we can make both in and outside our hospitals.”

Another episode shows Dr Downson help someone left with internal bleeding after they were crushed between a car and a motorbike as they changed a tyre.

The series also follows Dr Bramley as he and other members of the emergency services save the life of Nick Copson after he was left seriously hurt in a collision on a County Durham road, with the story returning to him and wife Nikki as his recovery continues at home.

The new series of Emergency Helicopter Medics airs at 9pm on Sundays.