The Supervet (Channel 4, 8pm)

WATCHING the constant stream of miracle operations on this series, you can't help wondering just how many thousands of pounds are being paid by owners to give their beloved pets longer lives.

Euthanasia rarely tends not to be an option for Noel Fitzpatrick. He's put himself at the cutting edge of veterinary science by inventing new techniques and finding ways of replacing joints, limbs and paws to allow animal after animal to enjoy pain-free lives..

"We are in the midst of great change in medicine," says Fitzpatrick. "It is ever more apparent in the world of medicine that surgery involving bionics and regenerative medicine should be shared among animals and humans for the greater good of all. Many of the techniques demonstrated in this series are not available for human patients yet and this should herald a wake-up call for human surgeons everywhere that unless we move forward together, both human and animal medicine will be much worse off because of this lack of communication.

"It is incredible when you think that in the Paralympics in 30years from now people may be running using the implants and techniques which will be seen in these animals in Supervet. The main challenge nowadays is not so much the technology because pretty much everything is possible, it is the moral and ethical implications of moving forward. Should veterinary medicine move forward or stay still? The decisions we make must always be in the best interests of the patient and it is not enough to be able to do something, it has to be the right thing to do for that patient in that moment in time."

This week Fitzpatrick moves away from four-legges friends and tries to save the life of a buzzard with a broken wing. Then Vicky and Brian arrive with a Labrador with badly damaged elbow joints, followed by a pampered cat needing repair work to its slipping knee-caps.

This Time Next Year (ITV, 8pm)

DAVINA McCall meets Karen Jackson, a 40-year-old nurse from Brighton who aims to lose half her body weight so she can finally have IVF treatment. Elsewhere, Linda Ralph, 68, from East Sussex, is hoping to be reunited with her old friend Maria who she's not seen for 50 years after they met in teacher training college. Also on the show is 21-year-old Rhys Jones. After contracting hemiplegic encephalitis as a toddler, Rhys was told he may never walk, but as defied all expectations and was hoping to qualify for Team GB at the Rio Paralympics and win a medal. There is also a district nurse who is hoping she can lose weight and fit back into her biking leathers, and an army medic and mum of three who is undergoing a leg amputation.

24 Hours in A&E (Channel 4, 9pm)

THERE'S more real-life medical drama as a road traffic accident causes 52-year-old Mark to suffer cardiac arrest. As he battles for survival at St George's Hospital, his wife Jacquie reminisces about how their relationship blossomed from friendship into romance. A severe hip dislocation seems to be the diagnosis when 25-year-old Kayley arrives in A&E after being thrown from her horse, and 23-year-old receptionist Melissa books an appointment with nurse practitioner Craig to find out why she is having trouble hearing.

The Missing (BBC1, 9pm)

SECRETS from the past are uncovered as Julien finally learns the truth behind Alice and Sophie's abduction, but with time running out, no one in Eckhausen will listen to him. With nowhere left to turn to, he has to go to great lengths in order to get people to hear the truth. Meanwhile, Gemma and Sam are forced to make a heartbreaking decision, which pushes them further apart than ever before. When Julien takes matters into his own hands, Gemma joins him in a final, desperate attempt to uncover the truth.

Viv Hardwick