Television Review: Surgery Saved My Life
What Parents Should Know
Parents need to know that this intense reality show focuses
on patients undergoing surgery in life-threatening situations.
Viewers learn, in detail, why a person's life is at risk. In
one show about spine surgery, for example, viewers find out how
a deformed spine presses in on the lungs, making it hard for
the patient to breathe. Subjects are sometimes children, making
the situations even more emotional. Scenes from the surgery
include close-up shots of the inside of bodies, including shots
of blood, bone, and organs.
Families can talk about medicine and science. What aspects of
medicine do teens find most fascinating? Are there any budding
doctors in the house? What part of practicing medicine would be
the most fulfilling? The most challenging? What surgical
methods or instruments seem the most technologically advanced?
Which seem the most crude? Do you think real-life medical
problems belong on TV?
The documentary-style series SURGERY SAVED MY LIFE follows people with life-threatening diseases or injuries as they undergo surgery and face the serious physical risks and emotional repercussions of their procedures. In addition to the personal stories, viewers get all the details of the surgeries themselves -- both by watching the actual operations (complete with bloody close-ups) and through digital representations of the repairs. The stories are often intense and emotional, as in one episode that introduced viewers two children stricken with scoliosis -- one living in New York and the other in Sierra Leone. The children have the same surgeon, who grew up poor in Ghana, and while the doctor is equally kind to both his young patients, viewers can't help but feel the sharp contrast in the type of medical care received by the two children because of their environments.
Teens interested in medicine or social issues -- as well as those with any familiarity with disease or serious injury -- may well be fascinated by this well-made program. And even those without a connection to the issue might find the personal stories compelling. That said, due to the emotional nature of the life-or-death situations, parents may want to watch along with their kids (or at least be on hand to comfort and explain as necessary) and consider keeping especially sensitive children away all together.
A Baby StoryPet MDs
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