When Nurse Crane attends a ventouse training course at St Cuthbert's, her age is called into question by the consultant running the course, and she is summoned to a meeting with the Board of Health. She starts to question her own abilities and suffers a crisis of confidence whilst overseeing the care of Simone and Larry Lucas who are expecting their second child. They are a young couple living in a council flat, and when the seemingly straightforward delivery runs into problems, Nurse Crane faces the challenges of a traumatic delivery alone.
Meanwhile, Trixie enjoys caring for Vinita Khatri, who is expecting her third child. However, the maternity home is thrown into chaos when an emergency outbreak of gastroenteritis is declared. The team, joined by Sister Monica Joan, must dig deep to ensure all mothers and newborn babies recover from the worrying outbreak. Unfortunately, their actions have not gone unnoticed by the Board of Health, who are less than happy with the way things have been handled.
Reggie is home from the Glasshouse Village, but he is not his usual self. He is drained of energy and suffering some hair loss. Concerned, Violet and Fred try to work out what's wrong, but it is not until Cyril encourages Reggie to seek help that they finally get some answers.