Still reeling from the news her father has cancer, Terri is informed terminal lung cancer patient Dave Armstrong is returning to Ward 17. Last time Dave was in hospital [ep 2.15], Terri got into an awful row with Mitch when she supported the patient's wish to refuse treatment. All Dave wanted was to die with dignity. However, now Terri knows her father has cancer, Dave's wish takes on a new meaning. Terri tries her hardest to avoid contact with Dave. But while Mitch performs a pleural tap to remove fluid from Dave's lung, Terri has to comfort Dave's wife Rosemary. When Rosemary goes home to rest for a while, Dave begs Terri and Mitch to allow him to have chemotherapy to extend his life a few weeks so he can see his daughters again at Christmas. Mitch has to break the news that chemotherapy now would not help. Dave has to prepare himself to die.

Dave seeks out Terri and spends the afternoon with her, talking about his love for his wife and daughters. Terri feels like she is attending a dress rehearsal for her own father's death. Dave starts to fail and Terri calls Rosemary back. Terri admits to Mitch that every time Dave looks at her she can see her own father and the future. Accompanied by Mitch, Terri supports Dave and Rosemary through the last hours of his life. Alone Terri lays Dave out, telling him how much she respects him and admits to her fear she will not have the same respect for her father when it is his time.

Ben and Bron attend an accident where Gordie and Col, two escaped prisoners, are trapped in a car. Ambulance Rescue work to release the trapped men and to secure the electricity lines which threaten both the rescue crews and the accident victims. Gordie is released but has no feeling below the waist. Ben feels he may have contributed to Gordie's injuries. Ben is determined to save Col but he needs the Trauma Team. Luke arrives to assess the situation. He realises Col is suffering from a slow collecting tamponade. He will die unless a small hole in his heart is plugged. There is no time to get him to hospital — Luke has no option but to open Col's chest at the accident site.

Von supervises work experience student Julian Ridgeway, son of the All Saints CEO Stan Ridgeway. Julian, influenced by his surgeon mother, is determined to be a doctor. Von discovers he has little empathy with patients and no respect for nurses. Julian is particularly scathing about Jane Potter, a young mother who is now in a coma. Julian believes caring for her is a waste of time. Observing Von as she nurses her patient, Julian begins to realise nurses are a doctors' eyes, ears and hands. His respect for nurses is confirmed when Von's care for Jane results in her regaining consciousness.

Life Class

Georgie Parker

Jeremy Cumpston

Sam Healy

Martin Lynes

Judith McGrath

Andrew McKaige

Libby Tanner

Ben Tari

Kirrily White

Erik Thomson

Catherine Roden

Charlie Strachan

Ghosts of Christmas Past

Blood and Water

The lives of the Ward 17 staff are about to change forever when an emotional Sophie battles her father-in-law to retain custody of her two young boys. With her best friends being used against her in a seemingly unwinnable custody fight, Sophie, in her desperation, makes a drastic decision about her children's future. Bron becomes emotionally involved in the fate of a car accident victim and his young daughter. Jared is an unlikely ally when a patient returns to Ward 17 for an operation he is determined will enable him to walk again.

Truth and Consequences (Part 1)

Having responded to the scene of Sophie's car accident, Ben is having difficulty coming to terms with the aftermath of treating people he knows. Sophie and her children have survived the head-on collision resulting from her impaired driving but her friends are even more shocked when her desperate actions the night before come to light. Refusing to lose custody of her children to the man who raised her husband, Sophie confronts her father-in-law from her hospital bed putting Terri and Peter in the middle of a siege situation that will change eveyone's life. Meanwhile, Bron's fundraising netball game disintegrates when some personal agendas come into play on the court and Von's New Year's resolution seems destined to go up in smoke. A comment in the OR results in a nurse filing a report against Luke for negligence.

Truth and Consequences (Part 2)

Terri struggles to deal with what has happened to her friends Sophie and Peter. Bron learns about the hierarchy in the ambulance organisation when she finds herself under the supervision of a strict training officer. Having been confined to desk work while recovering from his Post Traumatic Stress, Ben confronts his demons when he resuscitates a girl at a local shopping mall. Jared and Samantha's blossoming romance is tested when they disagree on a patient's diagnosis. Despite downplaying the honour publicly, Von is secretly thrilled to be chosen as Employee of the Month. Connor ignores pleas to seek treatment for his bad back — until he sets eyes on Lily, the gorgeous acupuncturist.

Aftershocks

A busy day on the ward turns to chaos when the Health Minister is brought in as a patient. Experiencing first-hand the demands on the public health system, the Minister is sympathetic to the needs of the nursing staff but can offer nothing more than an expression of support. A lack of beds on the ward means a patient is left to recover from her operation on a trolley in the corridor. Despite protests from Steph, Luke is authorised to send the patient home early — a decision that has disastrous consequences. Terri struggles to help a Peter cope with his disabilities. Discouraged by his prognosis for recovery, Peter has difficulty adjusting to life in the hospital as a patient. Connor's visit to Lily, the beautiful acupuncturist, has embarrassing repercussions.

The Longest Day

Terri's emotional equilibrium is tipped when an old flame and colleague, Dr. Mitch Stevens, returns to All Saints after a ten year absence. She is confronted with her past and he delights in stirring the pot. Jaz is forced to make a decision about her pregnancy while Terri and Steph have a confrontation over the issue. Jared sticks to his old-fashioned romantic ideas in his quest to win Samantha's affections. Connor's life is made difficult by a female truck driver while Ben is forced to deal with an emergency situation while on an abseiling course.

If These Walls Could Talk

Mitch Stevens' unorthodox doctoring style brings tension — and humour — to Terri's ward. He steps on many toes as he goes but his decisions prove to be life-saving. Ben's first day back on the job as a paramedic brings unanticipated challenges for Bron when a young mother suffers an horrific tractor accident. Samantha O'Hara suffers a crisis of confidence when she makes a diagnostic mistake which affects her budding relationship with Jared while Connor becomes the unwitting pawn in a lapdancer's manipulative game. Terri steps in to care for Peter when he dismisses his homecare nurse.

Getting to Know You

In an episode about dependence between friends, partners and workmates, dependence takes the form of teamwork, friendship and co-operation for some, while for others it is a reminder of a lack of independence. A street kid holds Mitch hostage in an attempt to abduct his junkie friend from Ward 17. Bron and Ben are faced with a complicated premature childbirth which tests Bron and brings up painful memories for Ben. Terri tries to help Peter cope with his trying day as a hospital out-patient. Connor suspects a budding romance between two patients. Von's Employeee of the Month honour garners her more unwanted attention.

Dependence Day

When a Jehovah's Witness patient is admitted for treatment, Terri and Luke find themselves on opposing sides of an ethical dilemma. Bron is forced to make some difficult decisions in order to save a life when she is caught up in an armed robbery. Mitch is devastated by the unexpected death of a patient despite his furious efforts to resuscitate her. Conner scores a double date with a surprising conclusion.

Bloodlines

The ward is thrown into turmoil when a patient who claims to be psychic says she spoke to the ghost of Sophie Williams who comforted her through the night. The woman's claims and the associated media coverage keep the staff on edge but the arrival of one young visitor pushes Von over the edge. Terri finds herself torn between her duty as a nurse and as a nun when she tries to help a young patient confused about his sexuality. Bron and Jared find life steamy at home when Connor has a house call from Lily. Peter gets more than he bargained for when he wallows in self-pity once too often.

More Things in Heaven and Earth

Peter is pushed to the limit when his life seems to be falling apart and he considers taking drastic measures. Samantha and Jared suspect a son of drugging his father but their differing approachs to the case serves to highlight their different backgrounds. Ben decides he can't wait for Steph to come around to the idea of having children and makes a momentous decision. While running the ward, Steph sends the staff mad when she takes her study too seriously. Jared and Samantha's relationship is made public, much to Jared's surprise. Luke leads a group of students on rounds and Mitch find the proper motivation to aid a patient's recovery.

Pushed to the Limit

Ward 17 is thrown into turmoil when Danny Bucknell is admitted as a patient to recover following a suicide attempt. It's a guilt-stricken time for Peter when his son goes missing and he comes to the realisation that it is time he focused on being a good father again. When Jaz's final attempts to make him admit to the rape fail, she makes an important life decision and announces her resignation with the intention of going back to school. Bron and Ben disagree about how best to handle the situation when they attend to a man who has been trapped under a fallen tree. Mitch picks up an interesting case from Emergency and Connor has the day from Hell when Joan Marden, the Assistant Director of Nursing, comes under his care.

Friends and Lovers

Emotions on a personal level are running high when Peter shocks his friends by revealing he has resigned from All Saints, leaving Terri feeling lost and alone. Bron finds it hard to stick to ambulance procedures when a young security guard that has been shot during an armed robbery at Cougars is a friend. A young bashing victim tells Steph a secret, leaving her to decide whether to tell the police or not. Samantha finally meets Jared's mother but her hopes for making a good first impression are quickly dashed. Meanwhile, a new temporary ward clerk irritates the staff.

Judgement Day

Professional boundaries are overstepped when Mitch and Luke clash over treatment for a girl with a brain aneurysm. Bron comes to a shocking realisation about herself when she treats a man who has failed in a suicide attempt. After discovering Ben has been going to sperm bank, Steph thinks he is obsessed with becoming a father but delivering a baby helps her understand his desperation. Meanwhile, Von is puzzled by the mysterious behaviour of one of the patients in her care and Jared accuses Bron of stealing the rent money.

Roll the Dice

Jared and Samantha's relationship is strained after he finds himself unknowingly caring for her mother when she is admitted to Ward 17 for a hip replacement and he finally learns why Sam has been hiding details of her personal life from him. Ben and Bron clash when she doesn't follow procedure while dealing with a heroin-addicted mother at the scene of a car accident. Forced to file a report on the incident, Ben then accuses Bron of taking advantage of their friendship. Von finds herself in the middle of a love triangle as she tries to keep a patient's wife and mistress from meeting one another. Luke's patient, a recovering drug addict, refuses pain medication after surgery leaving Terri to seek out alternative treatments. Meanwhile, Connor celebrates a birthdayand another temporary ward clerk joins the team.

My Mother, Myself

Mitch is forced to confront his fears when a cancer patient refuses treatment. He embarks on a campaign to make his patient change his mind but ending up drunk and alone, he bangs on Terri's door. Steph gets starry-eyed about a possible promotion when Joan recommends Terri for a new position as her replacement. Bron gets the "relative from Hell" when she finds herself under constant scrutiny by a patient's daughter during her ward shift. Meanwhile, Jared blames Connor when Samantha's mother takes a fall and Ward 17 is finally sent a charming, polite and quick ward clerk… but for how long?

Get A Life

It's a heartbreaking time for Samantha when her mother does not respond to treatment for pneumonia and a wound infection. She finds she cannot cope with her impending death and Jared is shocked when she drops a bombshell on him. When an eager young bystander rescues an alcoholic from a blazing warehouse, Ben suspects foul play while Bron learns that ego is a dirty word. Meanwhile, Mitch uses his voodoo skills to help a deluded patient.

An Irish Lullaby

It's a hard day out in the field for Ben and Luke when they come into conflict over their differing approaches to saving a factory worker with his arm caught in a machine. Steph questions her choice not to have children when she nurses a successful businesswoman, diagnosed with breast cancer, who regrets giving up her child for adoption during her teenage years. Connor fears that a series of late nights may have caused him to endanger the life of a patient. Terri is concerned Jared's unresolved feelings about his break-up with Samantha are affecting his work.

Head to Head

Emotions run high when a patient claims to have been fully conscious during an agonising operation. While the doctors and administration dismiss the very notion, Steph fights to have the woman's concerns heard. Bron fears her prejudices may result in a young girl being separated from her junkie mother. Is it too late to stop Welfare from interferring? Connor is having trouble with his ancupuncturist girlfriend after slighting her profession and must find a way back into her good books. Recommending a patient who is refusing any pain medication may be just what he needs… or not. Meanwhile, Von is forced to enlist some male help in getting through to a troubled teenage boy.

Desperate Remedies

Luke has had enough… Bron has been avoiding him and he needs to know where he stands in her life. Confronting her, Luke demands to know why she insists on messing with his emotions. Despite attempts to avoid the real issue, Bron is faced with an insistent Luke — he wants her to let him know what she wants, needs, expects from him. Bron takes that ultimatum with her on her paramedic shift.

Things soon become clearer when she and Ben attend a motor vehicle accident and find an old couple injured in their campervan. When Donald refuses to leave the woman he has loved all his adult life, Bron is shown the meaning of true love. The elderly couple dies together as they would have wanted, and Bron realises that true love still exists in this messed-up world. But does it exist for her?

Von is not happy with the arrival of her next-door neighbour on the ward. Hazel lives alone, is an alcohol abuser, and Von does her best to keep away from the situation as the rest of the staff debate the rights and wrongs of treating someone who is so obviously her own worst enemy. Mitch, however, is not about to give up on Hazel and puts pressure on Luke to help him ignore hospital policy and operate on the woman. Someone has to reach out and help this woman… is Luke the man to do it?

Jard is smitten — in the professional sense — by the arrival of an unidentified man who does not seem to have a friend in the world. But the patient's arrival on the ward seems to coincide neatly with the outbreak of several minor fires, and Jared soon realises that his patient is a little too handy with a box of matches. Jared has to take the man with him to be constantly supervised while waiting for a psychiatric evaluation.

While everyone else is trying hard to reach out to their patients, Connor is doing his damnedest to shut his up. Ralph takes incessantly, about everything, but like so many people in the world is largely dismissed. Given everything else that is happening on the ward today, Connor is compelled to take some time to get to know Ralph and is surprised to find he has a lot to offer.

The Human Touch

Sister Bernard again questions Terri about her commitment to All Saints and apparent lack of commitment to the Order's community house. Terri is outraged to learn that Bernard has already taken the liberty of discussing the situation with the Superior General. To Bernard's way of thinking, Terri needs to make a decision about what really is the priority in her life.

When Connor learns that his brother Greg has been admitted to All Saints, he is reticent about making contact. The pair has not seen each other for over a year and their relationship is far from rosy. Connor swallows his pride and arranges for his brother to come to Ward 17, hoping that this could be his chance to build bridges with his estranged sibling. But Greg's antagonistic behaviour is not making things easy for either of them.

A newlywed couple begins to think they are never going to make the cruise they have booked for their honeymoon. The groom has been brought into All Saints on his wedding night following an asthma attack at the reception. Just when it looks like he is about to be discharged, he suffers another attack and Mitch has no option but to keep him under further observation. Then, when the evacuation happens, it really looks as if they will miss the boat.

An unidentified male patient who attempted suicide is sent up from Emergency. He is believed to have taken a non-lethal dose of a sleeping pill. What starts out to be a straightforward babysitting job turns nasty when the patient suddenly arrests and dies. Von and Steph are in the process of laying out his body when the pathology lab puts through an urgent call to Mitch. The blood tests indicate the patient has swallowed a highly reactive agricultural chemical which has reacted with the fluid in his stomach. The dead man's body is consequently leaching toxic fumes. As a result, Ward 17 needs to be evacuated.

A disaster plan is put into action. When all the patients are removed from the ward, the staff themselves are shepherded outside and ordered to take blood from and examine each other. All are told to be on the lookout for possible side effects of exposure. Realising they are dealing very much with an unknown quantity, Steph worries that her fertility may be affected.

Bron is disillusioned about her career in the ambulance service. She is frustrated that she is unable to use a lot of the skills she acquired during her years of nursing. But while she and Ben are transporting a patient from Ward 17 to St Angela's, both her nursing and ambulance skills are required to help treat a fitting patient. This experience renews her commitment to the ambulance service and she decides to study for her Level 2 exams.

Disaster Plan

Working on Ward 17 as an agency nurse, Bron is allocated a patient, Phil Oram, who has no memory of the accident in which he lost his wife and child. When he meets Bron he does remember something — Bron attended the accident as an ambulance officer. But while he remembers Bron, she has no memory of him, nor even of attending the scene.

Plagued with guilt that she could forget a patient, Bron is placed under greater pressure when she realises that every time Phil sees her, more memories are triggered. He reaches a point where he wants the memories to stop. He is tortured by the thought that his wife died while he was blaming her for the death of their son.

Unable to change patients, Bron is forced to help Phil come to terms with his memories. In the process, she starts to remember the accident and has to come to terms with the reason why she blocked that particular accident from her mind.

Terri meets with the Superior General of her Order. She expects support from her old friend, but instead is confronted with some unwelcome home truths. Terri is asked to consider living outside the community house for a while and is forced to make some major decisions about her future.

Luke performs a simple tonsillectomy on Zap McCafferty, a young singer and musician. Everything goes well in theatre but on his return to the ward Zap starts to display unusual symptoms. Luke is at a loss to understand what is wrong with his patient. He has to consider taking him back to theatre for an exploratory operation. Finally he uses all medical skills to diagnose a rare and life-threatening disease.

Jared is fearful that both he and Von may be starting to display ongoing symptoms as a result of being exposed to toxic chemical fumes. Mitch examines him, takes tests and is able to relieve him of his concerns. However, Von's symptoms are not so easily explained.

Bron and Jared are not comfortable with Connor's brother, Greg, staying in their house. Connor is trying desperately to rebuild his relationship with Greg and help him get his life back on track after the break-up of his marriage and the loss of his job. But Greg is being a less than gracious houseguest. When Jared comes home early from work he discovers why Greg's life is on a downhill slide.

Forget-Me-Knots

Teenaged twins Alan and Brett Cameron [originally seen in episode 1.39, although not by these actors] suffer from cystic fibrosis and have been on a long waiting list for lung transplants. Their overall health has deteriorated recently with Alan bedridden at home with pseudomonas. Brett has the same condition but is not quite as acutely ill as his brother. Alan has been brought on to Ward 17 for treatment. The staff know Alan and his brother very well — they have been regular patients at All Saints all their lives, and they are extremely well-informed about their cystic fibrosis and its complications.

The twins are bonded in age, temperament and, most of all, their illness. Now, for the first time in their lives, they are going to be separated by something they never anticipated: good health. When a lung transplant becomes a possibility, one of them will have a ticket to health, leaving the other behind. This creates feelings of guilt, isolation and bitterness they never anticipated.

Meanwhile, Connor is having his own sibling problems. He has to decide what to do when Jared finally tells him he caught Connor's brother Greg injecting heroin in the bathroom. Connor's initial hope of helping his brother is shattered when he finds Greg stealing. But what can he do to help Greg when he won't try to help himself?

Steph is nursing Seb Connelly, a sixteen-year-old Aboriginal kid from a small country town. Seb has relocated to Sydney on a football scholarship and contract and is in Ward 17 after an appendectomy. The chance discovery that he has only one kidney could have terrible repercussions for his career.

Terri's excitement about living alone is counterbalanced by the potential hurdles in her new life away from the community. Fortunately Von is there to guide her.

Bron, who had apparently kicked the gambling demon, is in danger again. When Greg Costello steals her rent money she has to find a way to get some cash in a hurry.

Shoot the Messenger

Ben and Bron are called to a suburban house and soon realise that the occupant, although a fully grown man, is severely developmentally delayed. It takes the police's arrival to gain entrance to the house, where the young man's grandmother lies dead at the kitchen table. During the laying-out process, Thomas panics, runs from the house and is hit by a car. Although he is not badly injured, Bron feels responsible, and stays with him during his admission to Ward 17. Thomas clings to Bron as a familiar face and is comforted when she is back the following day as an agency nurse. He bonds with her but she just cannot manage to explain to him that his nanna is not coming back. Meanwhile, the hospital social worker assesses Thomas and decides to recommend to Community Services that Thomas should be institutionalised. Somehow Bron can't bring herself to give up on the idea Thomas could have a brighter future than this.

Von is touched by the plight of one of her patients. Hilary is a middle-aged woman with terminal cancer who draws Von into her scheme to find a new companion for her husband, Owen. At first Von is helping with the 'interviews' but it soon becomes clear to Hilary that Von could be the perfect candidate. And maybe Von is allowing herself to think the same way — it helps that she and Owen get on like a house on fire and have bonded over their memories of serving in Vietnam during the war.

Jared is looking after a young diabetic man, Leo, who has gone on a bender. Mitch, although feeling sorry for the state the guy is in, has little time for people who refuse to take their treatment seriously. Jared suspects that something is amiss but then it is Mitch who finally gets the young man to tell the story of how he was raped.

Terri has moved from the community house into a modest flat and invited her workmates around for a low-key celebration. But All Saints staff work hard and play hard and the 'few drinks' look like turning into a full-on party — especially when Connor spikes the punch. And, after Mitch's jokes about booking a stripper as a housewarming present, Terri is suspicious when he arrives with a police escort.

In With the New

Bron is going all-out to help mentally disabled patient Thomas with his assessment for placement by Community Services. She believes he is capable of living in a share household with minimum supervision and this would help him develop further — rather than being institutionalised. But there is a major setback when Thomas is distressed by a casual shift nurse and then refuses to practise any of the life skills (feeding and dressing himself) which Bron has been helping him learn. Terri points out that Bron will just have to start over again but time is running out as the second assessment is due later in the day.

Ben and John are the ambos called out to a house by Kerri Williams. When they arrive, Kerri's husband, Gareth, is unconscious on the floor as a result of a domestic argument. When Ben sees Kerri about to shake her crying baby, he intervenes. As Ben grabs the baby, Kerri falls. She ends up in Ward 17, feeling very much the victim despite her behaviour. Steph is shocked when she hears Kerri say she has been assaulted by an ambulance officer. Unaware that the woman has embroidered her story and that the ambulance officer is Ben, Steph encourages Kerri to report the incident. This results in a huge rift between husband and wife, with Ben accusing Steph of not knowing him at all if she thinks him capable of such behaviour.

Steph is left out on a limb when she discovers that Kerri has a history of ill-treatment of her children and was very likely to have been lying to cover her own actions. The episode ends with Ben telling Steph that he thinks the marriage is over.

Daniel Parker is a man in his 50s, recently divorced and with a new young girlfriend in her mid-20s. He is very optimistic as he goes into surgery for cancer of the bowel, choosing not to believe the condition will result in any permanent damage. When he wakes to find he has had a colostomy, he does not trust his young partner Kate to stand by him. And, rather than giving her a chance, he sets out to drive her away. Daniel focuses his hope on his ex-wife Angela — not considering she may also have moved on with her life since she ended the marriage.

Second Chance

Terri becomes suspicious about the reasons for a man's repeat hospital visits. Neil has been admitted to All Saints for a variety of complaints over recent months. And now he is being prepped for an appendicectomy. After more than a decade in nursing, Terri knows patients sometimes develop a crush on their nurse but she begins to think there is something much stranger behind Neil's run of accidents and illnesses.

Luke's problems with Neil's case are compounded by having to supervise middle-aged intern, Dr. Ashok Patel. Luke immediately sizes him up as a dithering pedant. Even patient, Russel Woods, wonders whether Ashok knows what he is doing. And Jared finds himself in the unenviable position of trying to keep Luke, Ashok and Russell all happy, while at the same time trying to quell his own doubts about Ashok's methods. But Ashok refuses to dismiss Russell's breathing problems as asthma.

Bron and Ben are called out to a near-drowning and bring in teenager Cathy Maxwell. Cathy is brought up to Ward 17 and is put under Mitch and Steph's care. She is a bright and talented girl and it looks like she will be able to be discharged quickly into the care of her loving parents. So the shocking and unpredictable actions he takes when no-one is looking causes Mitch to completely re-evaluate his treatment of her and land Steph in trouble.

Mitch has noted that Steph is "away with the pixies" all day — no one is aware that Ben has walked out on her. Terri does her best to find out what is behind Steph's behaviour but she is not ready to talk. Neither is Ben — but he is stuck on the job with the ever inquisitive Bron and it is not long before she starts putting the pieces of the puzzle together.

And Ward 17 has another new ward clerk. Tony Hurst is young and competent, with just the sort of bubbly personality that keeps the ward upbeat. He is a secure gay guy and while it is not a problem for him, it does seem to make Connor uncomfortable — and that encourages Tony to stir just that little bit more and consequently Connor to be a little more uptight.

End Game

Terri takes another step in defining her newly-found independence, she invites her parents to dinner. Mitch knows Ryan and Eileen Sullivan from the "old days" and his concern suggests Terri may be in for a difficult evening. Terri reluctantly extends and invitation to Mitch but it proves to be a wise move. As the evening progresses, so does Ryan's mood — from avuncular father to aggressive bully. The mood swing is connected to Ryan's heavy drinking. But Mitch is called back to the hospital and Terri has to deal with the end of the evening solo.

Her father's anger is aimed at her moves for independence and he accuses her of betraying her calling. When he turns his anger on his wife, Terri fakes an illness to give her mother a reason for staying the night. The next morning, Terri spots bruises on her mother's arms and realises that Ryan's drunken bullying may extend to physical abuse. Mitch suspects the same thing but when he tries to raise the subject with Terri, she shuns it. It is not something she wants to admit or face.

Ben has left Steph and is back living with his parents. He has told Bron but no-one else knows. Ben and Steph are keeping their miserable secret, ashamed to admit their marriage has fallen apart. Ben takes refuge in work but even this seems to only underline his disenchantment with the so-called virtues… love, fidelity and human decency. But his professionalism rises above his anger at a young criminal, and he saves a life.

Working night shift, Steph encounters two motor vehicle accident victims, rammed while making love in their car. She chooses to place her own interpretation on this relationship, especially when the first word the female utters is her husband's name. Steph may have lost true love but at least it is real for these two. She is disillusioned when she discovers the couple are adulterers, cheating on their respective partners. Her enthusiasm swings to anger and she is prepared to let the truth come out. However, she is outvoted by the rest of the staff who attempt a coverup as the male victim's wife arrives. Unfortunately, the wife discovers the truth. It is ironic that she lays her bitterness on Stephanie. In the end, Ben and Steph have the opportunity to talk, to communicate how they really feel. But the moment is lost.

Connor is looking forward to a quiet night shift in Ward 17 but it is not to be. A post-op hernia patient, Billy, proves to be a chronic snorer, keeping the rest of the patients awake. While amusing at first (unless you happen to be a patient or a member of the suffering staff), it becomes potentially tragic. Connor suspects the patient is suffering from Sleep Apnoea, and his insight saves Billy's life.

Mitch is summoned back when head injury patient Jeff Huxley collapses after a minor stumble. Von worries that the blame may be laid at her door. But Mitch diagnoses a slow bleeding spleen caused by the accident that gave Jeff the head injury.

On top of all this, Von knows that there is something seriously wrong with her. She is counting on Mitch to come up with the answer, but he cannot give it to her yet.

Behind Closed Curtains

Mary Ellison is brought into Emergency after having collapsed in the streets. Mitch tries to examine her, only to find the young girl is terrified of him. Mitch is forced to call Terri in to help when Mary's mother turns up and seems even more horrified that a man might think about touching her daughter. Terri and Mitch are forced to work very closely together to unravel the mystery. The situation is further complicated when it is discovered that, while she looks fourteen, Mary is twenty-one and has a blood pressure level a middle-aged man would be worried about. Terri finally uncovers the truth and finds herself caught between her compassion for the mother and her horror at the twisted interpretation the woman has put on religion. When it is discovered that she has been feeding her young daughter steroids and hormones to avert the start of menstruation, Terri has to walk away.

Bron and Ben have their hands full with a sad young man, Vince, who is desperate to prove his love to a woman called Tina. Refusing treatment the first time they are called out to him, Vince is soon in physical danger again. When it is discovered that the women is dead, killed in a car accident just the day before, Ben uses his own feelings for Steph to talk Vince out of hurting himself.

Steph, still trying to make sense of her life, is saddled with a family who cares just a little too much. While their mother recovers from surgery, the family gather in a bedside vigil, making Steph's life hell.

Connor, trying to cope with his continued wariness over the new gay ward clerk and run off his feet on a particularly busy day, is accused of stealing money from a patient's wallet. Despite his protestations to the contrary, Connor can't be sure if the money was there in the first place.

Jared's patient is unconscious, stable and has an unusually large penis. The news spreads like wildfire through the ward and everyone but Connor seems impressed. Finally, unable to deny his curiosity, Connor sneaks in to have a look… only to have the patient wake up and catch him.

Lesser of Two Evils

When Ben and Bron turn up with a patient who is desperately ill but refuses to enter the hospital, they present Luke with an opportunity to think outside the square and to meet what develops into a very personal challenge. The patient turns out to be an Anglican priest who is absolutely phobic about hospitals. After initially rejecting the challenge of this patient, Luke uses every angle he can think of to win the confidence of the man, even examining him in the hospital's chapel as a first step on what is to be a difficult journey.

Terri, meanwhile, is dealing with the usual complications of an overworked ward, including the arrival of Stan Ridgeway's mother for care and observation. The fact that Luke has seconded Jared to deal with his ex-officia patient doesn't help matters at all.

She goes down to the chapel, only to discover that Luke has determined the necessity of urgent surgery for the priest — he has a potentially fatal dissecting aortic aneurism. Terri becomes a part of Luke's strategy and together they manage to encourage the priest up to Ward 17 and from there to the operating theatre.

Luke's unusual tactics win him brownie points on the ward and, boosted by his success, he invites Steph out to dinner. She accepts, herself on something of a high after recent academic success. But their date is doomed to failure because Steph still is not sure about her separation from Ben and also she is about to make a major professional mistake.

Tony Hurst, the ward clerk, is struggling to keep his head above water while he deals with equipment breakdowns and a busy schedule. Steph inadvertently leaves an exposed needle at the nurses' station whilst she is responding to an emergency, and Tony suffers a needlestick injury.

It is the beginning of a turn for the worse for everybody. The needle in question has been used on another difficult patient — a young woman, Simone, who is apparently suffering from kidney stones. It turns out she is just scamming Mitch in order to get free pethidine shots and she is actually a recidivist junkie.

Steph goes out on her date with Luke, encouraged by him to try to cheer up. The date turns out badly. Steph would be even more miserable if she knew that Ben has heard about the date. Steph, unbeknownst to Ben, has realised, via the date, that her affection for him is far from dead. She tries to approach him and, without telling her that he knows about her seeing Luke, he rejects her in no uncertain terms.

The only person who seems to be getting any good news on this particular day is Von, who finally learns that her illness is not, as she suspected, cancer but lupus. Her euphoria is a source of concern for Mitch, who would like her to take things a whole lot more seriously.

A Whole Lot to Lose

Connor is stunned to find Alana, a female patient, is a pre-operative transgender. His resolve to cope is shattered when he subsequently learns that she used to be his football coach, and a mentor after Connor's father died. Repulsed and betrayed, Connor wants nothing more to do with Alana. Nor can he understand how Alana's son Tom, also an old friend, can be so accepting of the situation. Alana is diagnosed with breast cancer as a result of the hormone therapy she is on. She refuses to have a mastectomy and will not stop taking the hormones, as it would mean returning to the body she felt trapped in all her life. Connor confronts her for being a coward. Surely any life is better than none at all? Tom helps Connor appreciate the significance and bravery of Alana's transformation. Her distress over the injustice of her fate and insistence that she is still the person Connor admired, finally makes him accept not only the choice Alana has made, but Alana as a woman.

While Steph worries about her husband, Ben enjoys the freedom of being a separated man by flirting with a woman he is called to attend. However, innocent banter suddenly becomes serious when the woman offers her his phone number and then a lift home. Ben succumbs, ending up in bed, only to regret it.

Von refuses to heed Mitch's constant nagging that she must adjust her lifestyle to accommodate her lupus. Her day is not made any easier by Colin, a flamboyant chef who refuses to change his long hours, copious drinking and rich diet despite his diagnosis as a diabetic. Von is finally forced to read the riot act to him and can no longer ignore the relevance of the lecture to herself. Mitch drives the point home. If Von does not look after herself, she won't be able to hold down her job — and her work is the only thing Von has in her life. She goes home to begin educating herself about coping with lupus.

Terri learns Mitch is seeing an employee at All Saints. She becomes totally preoccupied with finding out the woman's identity, finally discovering it is Juliette, a physiotherapist. Mitch's refusal to divulge anything only frustrates her further. Not only is she cool towards Juliette, she is also snappy with her staff. Terri can't believe she has become the victim of the green-eyed monster and resolves to pull herself together, offering Mitch her genuine blessings for his future with Juliette.

Jared is the only nurse to readily accept caring for an obsessive-compulsive patient. At first, he and Sharon get on well, sharing their liking for cleanliness. However, as Sharon's condition becomes more and more trying, Jared starts to recognises some of his own behaviour in her. He tries his best to fight his own 'tidy' instincts, but is destined to fail.

Just Like A Woman

Jared uncovers the dark secret behind an elderly woman's refusal to leave the bedside of a dear friend. Steph puts her credibility and that of a colleague on the line when she challenges a young doctor in front of her patient. Newly promoted and eager to put her new skills into action, ambulance officer Bron is desperate for some excitement, unfortunately her day is filled with nothing but nuisance calls. Connor looks set to miss the big footy semi-final but all is not lost when he helps save a patient's future.

Three's A Crowd

Connor reckons Jared should stop sitting at home pining for Samantha and get out more. To this end, he hassles Jared into going to the gym with him. Jared is driving them both to the gym when he knocks over Roger, a very fit guy who trains for triathlons. Roger, who is a very full-on personality, leaps up and says he is fine. Jared wants the guy to have a check-up but Roger says he does not have time and cycles off. Jared sees Roger again at the gym and is amazed by his fanatical approach to training. At the gym, Jared also meets Mel, an attractive instructor. As Jared leaves for work he finds Roger collapsed on the side of the road. Jared calls the ambulance. At the hospital it takes a while for Mitch to diagnose Roger, who is going into body meltdown (Rhabdomyolysis). Roger admits to Mitch he has used training as a way to avoid confronting his feelings about a broken relationship. This admission and a subsequent conversation with Mitch propels Jared back to the gym to ask Mel out on a date.

Connor is delighted to find Cougars star Darren Rigg admitted to Ward 17 and under his care. Darren is a fervent and very public anti-drugs campaigner. He is faced with the treatment decision of whether or not to use a steroid medication to make the football injury heal faster. If he does not take the steroids, he will not heal in time to take the field for the Grand Final. But, if he does take them, he feels it could compromise his anti-drugs position. Darren's fiancee is none other than Simone Carlisle. She is a drug addict who has managed to clean herself up but has hepatitis C. She agrees to allow Mitch to perform a liver biopsy but does not want to tell Darren about her hep C or her past. Simone's presence in the hospital is the talk of the ward, particularly as she may have inadvertently passed the hep C on to Tony via his needlestick injury.

Luke falls into the trap of joining in laughter at Steph's expense over the incident (in the previous episode) where she was responsible for a patient losing confidence in a doctor. This week, however, it is Luke's turn. Olivia, a large diabetic woman, has a reaction to antibiotics and can't breathe. Luke mucks up his attempt to intubate her. Swelling around her throat forces him to do a tracheostomy. After he cuts her neck open, he cannot find the windpipe in all the blood and gore. Stan Ridgeway, who is on the ward looking for Steph's incident report, come to Luke's rescue and the patient is saved. But Luke is completely humiliated.

Terri is forced to come to work out of uniform because both her uniforms were stolen from the clothesline, along with some of her underwear. The main suspect is Neil Phillips.

Ben and Steph's romance heats up, with Ben sending flowers to the ward and Steph slipping a note under a windscreen wiper on the ambulance. The flowers are a source of confusion to Terri, who thinks they are from Luke as a means of apologising to Steph.

Time Bombs

Terri's mother, Eileen, asks her for help when her husband (Terri's father), Ryan, bashes her. Eileen refuses to go to hospital and Terri asks Mitch to come to her flat to treat her. Mitch discovers Terri has never talked to her mother about the domestic violence. He urges her to persuade Eileen to leave Ryan. Terri tries, but all the years of pretence make it impossible for mother and daughter to be honest with each other. Terri thinks she can try again in the morning but when she gets up she finds that Eileen has gone home to Ryan.

Working a night shift, Von nurses Lillian Gehler, who has been in a car accident with her husband. Lillian is told her husband is in the Intensive Care Unit but she continues to ask why he does not come to visit. At first Von believes the woman's disorientation and anxiety are the result of the anaesthetic but she soon realises Lillian has no short-term memory. Von and Luke learn the memory loss is a pre-existing condition and was caused by herpes simplex encephalitis, and Lillian's husband was her primary carer. Von manages to calm her patient's anxiety. When she learns that Lillian's husband has died, Von has to break the sad news and share the woman's grief. Then, unable to remember even her own grief, the patient calls for Von again and asks when her husband will be coming to visit.

Ben and Bron attend a party where a young girl has collapsed after taking a cocktail of drugs and alcohol. Her student ID card identifies her as Zoe Dell. When Ben and Bron try to get her to hospital, they are confronted by a gang of drunken youths. They call for police back-up. The girl's condition worsens and they have to treat her while under siege. Steph believes the girl has been admitted with false ID and she clashes again with Dr. Preece, refusing to treat 'Zoe' as prescribed. Steph discovers the girl is really Julie Bentham and she is allergic to penicillin. If she is given the antibiotic she could die. Julie's life is saved twice in one night.

Connor is rushed off his feet when one of his patients reacts badly to a new sedative and starts to sleepwalk. Connor chases him around the hospital all night and falls foul of the night Assistant Director of Nursing Brenda Blair.

Memories by Moonlight

Ben and Bron arrive at a shooting to find the victim is a Family Court judge, well known for his strong views on family values. Fearing whoever shot the judge will return to finish the job off, police arrange for him to be under strict police guard as he is taken off to All Saints. The police presence on the ward puts extra pressure on the nursing staff; it is not only the hassle of showing ID every time they enter the judge's room but the feeling that every person who walks on to the ward could be the one who shot him. The judge's son waits dutifully for him to return from theatre. On first impressions they appear to have a strong relationship. It is not long, however, before the cracks start to show. As police begin to suspect the culprit may be a lot closer to home than first thought, Nicholas reveals to Terri it was he who shot his father — having caught him in the arms of a woman other than his mother. Bearing the weight of his confession, Terri attempts to resolve the family dilemma. She finds herself entangled in a situation which, emotionally, resembles her own family. Her sympathy with the boy's feelings, if not actions, bring to the surface desires Terri had kept hidden in the deep cavities of her mind since childhood.

Luke and Bron spend their last morning together before Luke heads off to a so-called medical conference in Alaska. Bron, who thinks it is unfair doctors get to have all the fun, would do anything to join him. Out on the road with Ben, it is all Bron talks about. After transporting the judge to hospital, the pair is off to a backyard accident at a suburban house. Having injured herself while committing a mischievous act, 10-year-old Tess has hidden from her mother and is refusing to come out from under the house. Ben decides that, since Bron is the smaller of them, she should go under the house to drag the kid out. Bron does so and in the process receives a nasty cut (and, unbeknownst to her, a bite from a funnel web spider). When she returns to All Saints Bron goes for the regulation tetanus shot. Soon after she begins to feel woozy. Thinking it is her weak attempt at getting sick leave so she can go overseas with Luke, Ben teases her. It is not until she collapses that Ben starts to take her seriously. With Ben's help, Mitch diagnoses her condition. It is a tense wait as the anti-venom kicks in and Bron begins to recover. Seeing the girl they love so vulnerable makes both Luke and Connor realise how important she is to them. It is Connor who finds himself on the backburner, again, when Luke tells Bron he loves her.

Everyone is a little surprised when Simone Carlisle is admitted to hospital with a threatened miscarriage, not least of all Tony. Any ill feelings he has towards her are pushed aside, however, when he learns she has lost the baby. Simone's fiance, Darren, is keen to try for another child straightaway. Mitch warns Simone against this, advising that the management of her hepatitis C must take priority over becoming pregnant. Mitch says Darren needs to be aware of her condition, especially if he is to be her life partner, but Simone is afraid of revealing her past to Darren, and risking losing the man she loves. With Mitch's support, she tells Darren about her hepatitis C status, and her history of IV drug abuse. Her worst fears are realised when Darren walks out. It is Tony who helps Simone find the strength to face life alone.

Von covers for Jared, who is suffering the effects of a strenuous gym routine.

True Love and the Blues

Knowing Me, Knowing You

Bron is thrilled to hear her new partner is none other than Peter Maroney. Pete has a reputation as a hero in his country hometown for his rescue of two children from a collapsing and burning building. Bron is even more thrilled to learn that, unlike Ben, he does not hold much stock in rules and regulations and allows her to perform procedures Ben would never allow. But her pleasure is short-lived when it becomes obvious something is very wrong with Pete. He is not allowing her to undertake procedures because he thinks she is capable but, rather, because he knows he is incapable of performing them himself. When the situation is finally revealed to her, Bron finds herself being held captive by a man who can see his whole career going down the drain.

Judith, a new mother, is admitted suffering flu-like symptoms. Her 12-week-old baby rooms with her, causing a bit of clucky behaviour from the staff. But when Judith collapses, putting both herself and her child at risk, Mitch starts to suspect they are dealing with something far more sinister than the flu. It turns out Judith is suffering from polio, contracted from her daughter, who has recently been immunised against the disease. Von is forced to admit to Terri her SLE (Lupus) status so as to be taken off the case. It falls to Jared to se the woman through the frightening and painful disease.

Ward 17 is pleased to see Brian again after so long, but not so pleased to hear his wife Marjorie has died and he has seemingly lost his will to live. Obviously neglecting his health and welfare, Brian is finally forced to admit he is not harbouring a death wish at all but, rather, feels tremendous guilt over the fact he wants to live despite having lost the love of his life.

The Cougars have finally taken out a Grand Final and Connor's celebrations have lasted a few days, during which both he and Tony have been missing in action. Connor can't remember most of what went on over those days. So when a local newspaper carries a front page spread on the post-match celebrations, featuring Connor and Tony in a warm embrace, Connor starts to wonder just what he got up to. Tony strings him along, having fun at Connor's expense. The fun stops when Mitch tells Tony his test results are back.

When Duty Calls

Connor enters the ward to confront a tense exchange between a mild-mannered young man, Scott, and a middle-aged woman, Margaret, demanding to be allowed to see her dying son — alone. Connor's sympathy for Margaret is secured when he witnesses a tearful bedside reunion with her emaciated son. But there is more to this than meets the eye: Scott is the dying man's lover of ten years, during which time Margaret has utterly rejected her son. She would not even know Mike was dying if Scott had not phoned her.

The scales fall from Connor's eyes once Margaret reveals her true colours — she is a bitter woman desperate to regain some control over her son's life, even if that means hijacking his final hours. Connor does what he can to help Scott spend time with Mike, which only serves to enrage Margaret further. When Scott magnanimously invites her back into the room for Mike's dying moments, she rewards the gesture with the crushing announcement that she — as Mike's mother and next of kin — is claiming her right to dispose of her son's body and possessions, denying Scott any participation in the funeral arrangements. Helpless in the face of the law, all that Connor can do is invite Scott to help lay out his dead boyfriend's body.

Steph is nursing a teenage girl suffering from cystic fibrosis. Deb has recently been removed from the lung transplant list for non-compliance with the strict medical regime required. This non-compliance has also led to the staphylococcus infection for which, in part, Deb has been hospitalised. The misery of this, combined with the news that a close friend has just died from the disease, initiates a dark spiral of depression from which not even Deb's devoted boyfriend Tim can lift her. When Steph finds the two entwined asleep on Deb's bed she does not at first suspect the awful truth: that they have entered a suicide pact and injected themselves with insulin. Once the pact has been discovered, only a cool, efficient response from our team ensures that the two silly kids survive. It's then compassionate counselling from Terri and intervention from Mitch that secures Deb's place back on the transplant list and gives her renewed hope for the future.

A lively 60-year-old jazz drummer succumbs to heart block as she tangos around the ward with the young man everyone has assumed to be her grandson. There is universal surprise and a small measure of comic revulsion at the revelation the young man is, in fact, her husband.

Bron plans a lavish homecoming for Luke, meeting him off his plane from Alaska with a limo and champagne. The sexual heat generated transfers to their afternoon shift — backfiring badly when, finding nowhere to satisfy their ardour they take refuge in Terri's office and Von walks in on them.

The Ties that Bind

Gabrielle Flanagan is admitted onto Ward 17 to donate bone marrow for a 12-year-old girl with leukaemia. On hearing her name, Von and Steph both wonder if it is "the Gabrielle Flanagan" — a woman whose baby daughter was stolen from her 10 years ago. Connor's curiosity is aroused. He is dying to ask Gabrielle — who is his patient — if she's the one. He does not have to wonder for long as Gabrielle, being highly strung and paranoid after so much time in the media spotlight, informs him that it is indeed her. Although they have got off to a bad start, Connor's sympathy grows as Gabrielle tells him about the never-ending quest to find her daughter, whom she believes may still be alive. Gabrielle shows Connor an image projection of what her daughter would look like now at age 12. Connor thinks it is uncanny that the picture looks very similar to the 12-year-old patient Alex, who is also in the Ward, to receive Gabrielle's bone marrow.

Jared tells Connor that Alex is adopted and they start to wonder if she could be Gabrielle's daughter — right age, exact bone marrow match, the likeness in the image projection picture. Gabrielle encounters Alex in the hospital grounds and is amazed at the resemblance to what her daughter should look like. She pesters Connor for details and when he can't tell her anything she manages to sneak a look at Alex's file. When she learns it is Alex who will be receiving her bone marrow she is convinced she is about to be reunited with her long lost baby girl.

Meanwhile, Alex Richards is devastated to learn from her parents she is adopted. She cannot understand why her parents kept it a secret from her — obviously they must be ashamed of her. Terri manages to convince the girl to listen to her parents' explanation of why they chose to lie to her.

Kevin Simms is admitted to the Ward suffering advanced emphysema. He is in a bad way and Mitch has to tell him he only has a short while to live. But Kevin is desperate to make it one extra week. He has put in for a marriage certificate so he can marry Liz, the woman he loves. Making her his wife is the only thing that will allow Kev to rest in peace — he wants to will his house to her but he is sure that his nasty sister is going to contest it. However, if Liz is his wife, his sister Maisie won't have a leg to stand on. Tony, who is feeling very depressed about his Hep C, discovers that in special circumstances a marriage licence can be rushed through. Tony seems to get a new lease on life as he sets about organising a perfect wedding for Kev and Liz. The only question is… will Kev stay alive long enough to make it to the altar?

Bron and Ben attend what has been described to them as a domestic dispute. A frantic man, Raymond, meets the ambulance and tells them he's stabbed his best mate Trevor. He thinks he has killed him! Bron and Ben race in side and are more than surprised by what they find.

Lost and Found

Prejudices come to the fore when the staff of Ward 17 discover they will be looking after a smuggler who is to be admitted with a bellyful of cocaine-filled condoms. The 'bloke' turns out to be a slip of a girl, who was once a junkie. The tragedy of her tale unfolds as she is monitored and guarded; she is desperately in love with her new husband, who is the only good thing to ever happen to her, and she wanted to help him realise his dream of a place in the country by smuggling coke — just this once. Her husband, Paul, has no intention of letting his wife go to jail, and puts a gun to Steph's head, he's getting his wife out of here! But Lisa needs surgery urgently. Paul will not let his wife out of his sight and when Luke points out that is not possible, Paul, at gunpoint, insists it is and that Luke must perform the surgery. Steph is roped in, and, Mitch volunteers himself as anaesthetist, rather then putting some other sucker at risk. The team heads off to surgery leaving Terri almost paralysed with fear. The last time there was a gun on the ward, two people died, and she eventually lost a man she cared deeply about. Von is the only one who realises what she is going through, and helps Terri cope as the ward is besieged with patients from the wing the theatre is in, evacuations having been necessary in case the gun goes off, exploding oxygen tanks.

In theatre, surgery goes ahead at gunpoint; Luke and Steph working on the patient as Mitch works hard to win Paul's trust and hopefully to get him to put away the gun. Just as it looks as if he has made a breakthrough, Luke nicks one of the condoms causing the cocaine to leak out and arrests lisa. The teams work to avert the crisis and once it seems clear Lisa will be all right, Paul insists they hand over the cocaine. There is shock for a moment as Mitch, Steph and Luke think this 'act of love' has in fact been about retrieving the drugs; but Paul slashes the condoms, tipping out the poison that has ruined his and Lisa's lives. He says a tearful goodbye to Lisa, hands Mitch the gun and walks out to face his fate. Leaving the surgical team to finish with Lisa and return to the arms of their waiting partners. As Steph and Ben embrace and Luke and Bron do likewise, Terri gives Mitch a stern lecture about the stupidity of putting his life at risk. Then Rose arrives and whisks Mitch away, leaving Terri alone.

Bron and Ben are called to an emergency in a local park, which turns out to be a pair of very embarrassed teenage sweethearts. Emily has called for help because Tim's penis is caught in his fly. Ben finally manages to release it and the young lovers head off hand in hand. The situation leads to Bron discovering more about the depth of Ben and Steph's feelings for each other.

The Stuff of Dreams

The ward is abuzz with the news a female boxer is on the ward, suffering from concussion due to a knockout punch in training. Charlie and her trainer Jimmy are itching to get out of All Saints and back in the ring — she is not too keen on hanging around for a CT scan — even though Luke fears she may have a cerebral bleed. But Steph suspects there may be other factors behind Charlie's symptoms, and a urine test confirms she is pregnant. Terrified a pregnancy will mean the end of her boxing career, Charlie demands an abortion. There's only one hitch, Luke refuses to write a referral, claiming there is no medical reason for a termination.

While nursing Charlie, Steph realises the young boxers's views on pregnancy are not as clear cut as she initially made out — especially when Steph points out motherhood need not mean the end of her promising career. But even if Charlie is cleared of brain injuries, she still faces a terrible decision: abort the pregnancy or lose her big chance to crack the US professional circuit.

The best-laid plans of Terri and Regina start crumbling when an elderly patient dies only hours before her long-lost son arrives on a mercy dash from the UK. Flu-ridden Bryce Jones is devastated to discover his mother has just died, but a bigger shock awaits him when he views the body — it is not his mother. In his already weakened physical state the emotional upheaval is too much for Bryce, and he is admitted to Ward 17 suffering from pneumonia. When his condition worsens and Mitch eventually diagnoses advanced cancer, Regina decides it is time to bring some happiness into the unlucky man's life.

Ben faces a reunion of a different sort when his ambulance is hijacked by Jason Richards — a mixed up young man whose obsession with becoming an ambulance officer has developed into full-blown psychosis. Ben is stuck in the back of the ambulance with a critically ill patient, and needs all his wits to convince Jason to drive them to hospital before the patient dies. It is a race against time which Ben appears to be losing when the patient suffers a cardiac arrest. Ben knows the only way he can save the patient is by relying on Jason's assistance — but is it a risk he is prepared to take?

Connor and Bron are shocked to discover Jared has not yet had sex with his girlfriend Mel. Connor makes it his mission to get Jared laid, whether he wants it now or not.

Meanwhile, Steph's experiences with Charlie have forced her to re-evaluate her attitude to motherhood. It is the end of a long journey for Steph and she knows Ben will be overjoyed to hear she wants to start a family after all. What she did not bargain on is Ben dropping the biggest bombshell of their marriage.

Outside the Square

Jared and Von are targeted by a seemingly perfect agency nurse but soon discover how deceiving appearances can be. Terri dramatically saves the life of a choking child but finds her neighbour's hero worship rather hard to take. Bron has the hottest tip ever for the Melbourne Cup but it looks like fate will keep her from winning a bundle. Regina receives a startling diagnosis.

Everyone Loves a Winner

It's Sunday on the ward. The atmosphere is more relaxed than it is on a weekday — less staff, fewer interruptions, radios are playing, no one is in a hurry to do anything. Steph is running the ward, glad of the opportunity to be in charge without Terri looking over her shoulder. There is an air of everyone pitching in, covering for each other as there are no administrative minders; nurses do their own housekeeping, take phone calls, write bed tags and collect x-rays.

Eddie Furlong is brought in suffering from hypothermia, having been fished out of the river following a late night boating accident. Eddie obsessed by the whereabouts of his two crewmates, especially his young brother Marty, whom he learns has been declared brain dead following a serious head injury. Seemingly depressed by his brother's death, Eddie attempts suicide via a paracetamol overdose. But the true reasons behind his suicide attempt — guilt and remorse — are revealed when the other member of the party, Rob, who has just been discharged from St Angela's arrives on the ward to accuse Eddie of cowardice and murder. He claims Eddie was so obsessed with saving his own skin, he left his companions for dead. Despite prompt action from the Ward 17 staff, Eddie's overdose looks set to cause major liver damage and probably death. His only chance of leading a healthy life, or indeed surviving the overdose, is to have a liver transplant. And his brother's liver is the obvious candidate. But Eddie has misgivings about accepting an organ from the brother he neglected to save.

Ben and Mick's day begins innocuously when they revive a wealthy yuppie who has taken a narcotics overdose. The ungrateful patient gives a false name and refuses to accompany them to hospital, leaving a bad taste in Ben and Mick's mouths. Later, Ben and Mick spot the man's sports car in the doctors' car park at All Saints. Ben and Steph are certain the person who has OD'd is in fact Tom Snowdon — an up and coming anaesthetics registrar and mate of Luke's. Luke initially dismisses the allegations against his colleague, but a mixture of self-interest and ethics finally force him to confront Tom about the overdose. In doing so, Luke realises there is more to being a successful doctor than having a huge trust account and a privileged background — Tom's background.

Terri is excited to be hosting brunch for her parents' 35th wedding anniversary. But things quickly sour when her intoxicated father slaps Eileen for some alleged past indiscretion. When Ryan attempts to do so again, Terri steps in to save her mother and causes her father to fall and break his hip. Caught between feelings of guilt over her actions and disgust over her father's, Terri arranges for her father to be admitted to Ward 17. Luke advises he will need a pin and plate inserted in his femur. Meanwhile, acting on a hunch, Mitch has secretively arranged a CT scan which reveals Ryan has life threatening cancer. Terri's abused mother rushes immediately to her husband's side, and Terri realises there is now no chance of her mother freeing herself from Ryan's controlling influence.

Meanwhile, Jared has a challenging day dealing with an erratic drunk suffering from Korsakoff's syndrome. And Mitch psyches up for his big dinner date with Rose's parents.

While the staff truggle to find some time to decorate the ward and Connor laments having to participate in the Christmas pageant, Mitch is forced to face some of the demons of his past in order to treat a woman who has presented with sudden, unexplained paralysis. Carol Sherwood collapsed on the sidewalk but tests reveal no physical explanation for the paralysis. On learning Carol did a stint as an aid worker in Somalia, Mitch starts to suspect the problem might have a psychological basis. In helping the paralysed aid-worker come to terms with memories of war-torn Africa, Mitch re-evaluates his own future, asking Terri if there is any hope for them.

A couple in room one are desperately trying to have their baby without her parents finding out. Rachel is Jewish, her husband Joe is Catholic. They have eloped to avoid the arguments their relationship has caused but now Rachel starts thinking she wants to have her mum and dad with her at this very special time. It is Jared who helps Rachel celebrate Hanukkah while Terri tries to bridge the gap between parent and child. She hopes witnessing the love between his daughter and Joe and holding his grandchild will convince Rachel's father to accept a gentile in his family.

Ben and Bron are on a Santa-collecting expedition as store and street Santas fall victim to various mishaps. When they are called to the house of a young boy, Shane, who has broken his arm, they are saddened to learn the boy's friend has just told him Santa does not really exist. Treating the boy's injuries is one thing, rekindling the joy of Christmas proves to be quite another. Help arrives in the form of a mugged Santa who spent last Christmas on Ward 17 — it is amazing what having Santa knock on your door can do to a child's belief in Christmas.

Steph is on cloud nine as she gives Ben his Christmas present early by announcing that she is pregnant. Although she and Ben agree to keep the news to themselves, they have trouble containing their excitement.

Terri is pleasantly surprised to find her flat decorated when she returns from work. Assuming Mitch is responsible, she won't believe his protestations he has not broken into her flat and decorated the tree he delivered earlier. Once everyone has gone, a knock on the door has her convinced Mitch has returned to take credit for the decorating. But it is someone else who wants to wish Terri a Merry Christmas...

Medical drama focusing on the working and personal lives of the doctors and nurses working on the front line of a busy inner city Emergency Department at All Saints Hospital.

Life Class

Seasons12

Season 2 Episodes43

Cast10

Crew2

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