THE lifesaving work of the health service was celebrated in a special NHS week to commemorate the health service's 53rd birthday this week (June 27 to July 5).

And to mark the occasion staff from Blackpool Victoria Hospital revealed the secrets of their vital work to The Citizen.

Consultant Nigel Kidner is one of three consultants in the Accident and Emergency (A and E) department -- one of the busiest A and E departments in the country with 81,989 cases seen last year.

Mr Kidner said that the public and the media often have an unrealistic idea of A and E medicine.

"Programmes like Casualty and ER are produced very well but don't give a true reflection of our daily activities because they've got to make it more exciting. But it can be more hectic than the programmes!

"We can get up to 300 patients a day. In summer it's often a mixture of cuts and bruises and other accidents and in winter we see a lot of poorly patients with respiratory complications during flu outbreaks.

"Staff in A and E have to be very tolerant and forgiving of the general public and have to be able to cope well with potentially overwhelming numbers and overwhelming demands. Teamwork is very important here.

"As a consultant I supervise clinical work and difficult clinical cases and also have a training role and a strategic role planning the direction of the department and the care that's delivered, and integrate activity with the rest of the hospital.

"A and E is rewarding for me because I enjoy the urgency that the job demands and being able to see a case through, especially when the outcome is good. But we do have tragic cases coming through the department. The reward is knowing that at least we have done the very best for the patient," he said.

Renee Mackley is the only female hospital porter at the VIc, working on the outpatients department. Along with the other 74 porters she plays a vital role in the running of the hospital, transporting people to and from departments.

"We do everything from keeping an eye on people coming in through the doors to taking bodies to the mortuary.

"We could do with more lady porters. Sometimes when you pick up female patients from the ward and they are not well they would rather a woman pick them up than a man.

"But there's a brilliant rapport with the patients. You have to be outgoing. I think working with the public is the best thing about the job -- no two days are alike," she said.

And the nurses -- there are more than a thousand at the Vic -- also play a vital role. Staff nurse Eric Norbury works on the Coronary Care Unit, caring for acute patients who have had heart attacks or have unstable hearts.

"It's a great area to work in and it's a great hospital to work in -- we've got a lot happening, a new cardiac unit and a new cancer unit. There's a lot of exciting new changes happening. It's a good time to be a nurse.

"Quite a lot of the job is emotional care, especially on our area, where deaths tend to be sudden. We have to give emotional support to families and staff alike," he said.

Eric and two colleagues from the Vic set up a new support service for bereaved relatives this year and the scheme was so successful that other hospitals are planning to adopt similar schemes.

"The most rewarding thing is when we get an emergency admission and are able to follow them through and see them head home again afterwards. They come in here hammering at heaven's door, then we see them go home again," he said.

The hospital runs "return to practice" sessions for nurses who are considering coming back to the profession after a break and is working to allow flexible working hours for nursing staff. For information on a nursing career at the hospital, call 303569 or 303575.