WREXHAM Maelor staff will be returning to our television screens this evening showing how they treat thousands of critically ill children.

Earlier last week, BBC Wales launched its first episode of Children’s Ward which takes viewers onto the busy ward at Wrexham Maelor Hospital where they treat its youngest patients.

The North Wales hospital sees upwards of 5,000 children through its doors yearly – and TV cameras were able to get a fly-on-the-wall outlook during some emotional stories of the young patients and the devoted staff who treat them.

In the second episode of the new series, eight-year-old Llew is back. He has been in and out of hospital since birth and he and his family are well-known to the staff on the ward.

For Llew - who cannot walk or talk - a common chest infection can become very serious, very quickly, and his mum brings him in concerned when he’s fighting a bad cough.

During the half-hour episode of the series, viewers will also see nine-year-old Millie-May - who is rushed in with a severe asthma attack.

She has been in 10 times in the last six months fighting to breathe. But, when paediatric consultant Dr Liz Richards investigates further, she comes to an unexpected conclusion about what the cause may be.

“It just comes on like that, there’s no pre-warning,” says Millie’s mum.

“That is the scary bit of Millie’s asthma – it’s that severe that it’s life or death.”

And there is another surprise diagnosis for eight-year-old Reuben.

He has a hereditary blood disorder but becomes rapidly ill while on the ward with symptoms that suggest something else could be the problem.

The next episode will be broadcast tonight, November 24, on BBC One Wales at 8.30pm. The first episode is still available to watch on the BBC iPlayer.