Award-Winning Documentary Series Again Features Loma Linda Hospital

By: Briana Pastorino, Loma Linda University Health News

The documentary TV series “Life on the Line,” which features stories of hope and courage from the Inland Empire, a metropolitan area west of Los Angeles, California, United States, begins airing its fourth season on PBS television stations across the United States, beginning December 19 at 7:00 p.m. on local channel KVCR.

Narrated by television journalist Lisa Ling, “Life on the Line” season 4 features six half-hour episodes, including stories from Loma Linda University Health (LLUH). The first episode, “Flight to Survive,” follows an emergency trauma team as they transport injured children by air to LLUH, one of the few Level I pediatric trauma centers in the nation.

The new season features stories of strength and resilience both from around the world and locally, including the case of Chino Hills teenager Alexis Anderson, who did not wake up for school one day. When her father found her, he started CPR on her. Alexis’s life depended on receiving heart treatment before it was too late.

Patricia Kelikani, producer of “Life on the Line,” said the show aims to inspire viewers across the nation to celebrate the good in people and the resilience of human nature.

“It’s an honor to bring real stories of hope and courage to television. Our goal is to inspire viewers as they experience heroic stories of those who chose not to give up and made a difference,” Kelikani said.

Additional episodes of “Life on the Line” season 4 follow women in Malawi, a country that has the highest rate of cervical cancer in the world; a toddler awaiting a kidney transplant; and a nearly 700-pound (318 kg) man on a mission to gain control of his life before he loses it.

The show’s first three seasons earned seven Emmy Awards in the United States and aired on more than 300 public television stations in more than 130 markets across the country.

The regular schedule of “Life on the Line” season 4 will be launched to all PBS stations in the nation in January 2019. A preview of the “Flight to Survive” story is available here.

The original version of this story was posted on the Loma Linda University Health news page.