'Call the Midwife' Tackles a Difficult Case with an Iron Lung

It was officially time for a summer vacation in the latest episode of Call the Midwife. Reggie (Daniel Laurie) returned to town for the holidays, but it was still full-time work for the nurses and nuns of Nonnatus House. Sister Julienne (Jenny Agutter) was looped into a case with an abused mother that made her question her purpose and the purpose of The Order within Poplar. The battle with the Board of Health was over, but the constant need to defend the role of Nonnatus House within the community had taken a toll on Sister Julienne. She was despondent and not eating as we entered the episode, and her difficulty connecting with her new patient, Eva Baldwin (Laura Hanna), only exacerbated her existential crisis. 

She wasn't the only one having a hard time in this episode. Nurse Turner (Laura Main) also had a rough week. She checked in on a polio patient, Owen Desmond (Ben Owen-Jones), only to discover that his devoted wife and caretaker, Betty (Sophie Bould), was not in the best shape herself. Tissues were once again needed to make it through this heartbreaking case. 

It wasn't all bad news in Poplar, though. Cyril (Zephryn Taitte) finally returned from Jamaica. Mrs. Buckle (Annabelle Apsion) immediately put him to work organizing a Poplar Commonwealth Games to entertain the children out of school for the holiday. That left him with little time to reconnect with Rosalind (Natalie Quarry), who made a significant discovery while Cyril was away. Little did she know, Cyril had returned with major news of his own that would mean big things for both of them. 

Nurse Crane (Linda Bassett) and Sister Veronica were very concerned about the Baldwin family squatting in an old warehouse. They recruited the services of Sister Julienne to step in with the difficult family. Even though the Baldwins declined a midwife service, she showed up for a check-up and noticed signs of abuse as Eva turned down any medical attention again and claimed clumsiness caused the mysterious bruises on her arm. 

The case really shook up Sister Julienne, and she confided in Sister Monica Joan (Judy Parfitt) that the declining interest in home births was undermining the importance of the midwives in the community. There was no immediate answer to the declining need for community midwives, but Sister Julienne could try again with the Baldwins. Her second visit was no more successful than the first, but she did remind Eva about the Tuesday clinics in case she changed her mind about needing help with the baby. 

Eva's husband Vincent (Robert Lonsdale) came home drunk that night after promising to stay sober. He attacked Eva when she admonished him for breaking his promise. She made her way to the clinic, where Sister Julienne informed her she was in labor. Eva immediately freaked out that her husband would kill her if he found out she went to the clinic against his wishes and tried to walk home by herself. 

Sister Julienne convinced Eva and her husband to let her care for Eva during her pregnancy and childbirth. Vincent went to the pub, and Sister Julienne assisted Eva in delivering another healthy baby girl. However, they were both in for a shock when Sister Julienne discovered that Eva was pregnant with twins. To make matters even more stressful, the second baby was not in the proper position for birth. Sister Julienne had to send Eva's older daughters to fetch an ambulance while she attempted to change the baby's birth position. 

Sister Julienne was miraculously able to turn the baby around and managed a successful, feet-first birth. Eva had yet another baby girl, but the second twin was a lot smaller and needed to be put in an incubator in the hospital. Sister Julienne was able to get the mom and the two babies settled before Vincent came looking for them. 

The near-death experience gave Eva the strength she needed to stand up to her abusive husband. She told him to leave and that she'd figure out how to take care of herself and their four children. He went with minimal hesitation, but Eva's strength renewed Sister Julienne's faith and purpose, so there was a lot of good that came out of the case. 

The Desmonds were dealt a difficult hand when Owen was diagnosed with polio two years after their marriage. Nurse Turner went to see him to attend to the bed sores on his heels, but noticed that his wife, Betty, was looking jaundiced. They arranged for someone to stay with Owen so that Betty could be seen by Dr. Turner (Stephen McGann). He ran the initial tests, but his findings suggested that Betty should go to the hospital immediately for a more in-depth follow-up. 

A mass was discovered on her X-ray, explaining the jaundice, but the doctors could not make an immediate diagnosis. The stress of wondering if she had cancer and what it would mean for Owen's care drove Betty into a spiral, so Nurse Turner called in her husband to help. He had to deliver the devastating news that she had pancreatic cancer that had spread to her liver. Treatments could make her feel more comfortable, but it was a terminal diagnosis. Dr. Turner was able to arrange for Owen to get a portable version of the iron lung, which allowed him to move to a wheelchair and sit by Betty's bedside in her final days. There was no cure, but he could hold her hand, and they could read to each other face to face for the first time in years. 

It was heartwrenching to watch, but Owen was there next to his wife for her final breath. He was heartbroken that he hadn't thought to record his wife's voice before she passed so that he could continue to listen to her read to him. Nurse Turner did the best she could by typing up one of Betty's favorite poems, leaving out the m's like Betty used to do. The gesture brought Owen to tears, but at least he had one more memento of his wife before being shipped off to a polio care facility. 

The summer holidays also brought Cyril back from Jamaica. He had to stay longer than expected because his mother-in-law passed away while he was overseas, but he was back in Poplar for good now. However, it didn't seem that Cyril was excited to be back in England, as he was immediately overwhelmed with planning the children's Poplar Commonwealth Games. 

Mrs. Wallace (Linda Hargreaves) finally asked Cyril what was bothering him, and he revealed that Lucille had asked him for a divorce while he was in Jamaica. She had no intention of moving back to London, and he did not wish to return to Jamaica, so they were at an impasse. His sullen mood stemmed from his uncertainty about whether the church would accept a divorcé as their pastor, but Mrs. Wallace assured him they wouldn't look at Cyril any differently. 

While it was sad to hear of Cyril's marriage dissolving, it did clear one obstacle for him and Rosalind. The young nurse finally confided in Joyce (Renee Bailey) that she had developed feelings for Cyril, and his time in Jamaica had only made her realize how serious they were. She couldn't make a move on a married man, though. So, Rosalind doesn't know that a door to Cyril's heart has been opened, but fans had their suspicions about a romantic spark between these two validated, and that feels almost as good. 

Call the Midwife Season 14 continues Sundays at 8 p.m. ET on most PBS stations, the PBS app, and the PBS Masterpiece Prime Video Channel weekly through mid-May. The series has already been streaming as an early weekly release on PBS Passport for members, and all episodes will be available until the end of May. As always, check your local listings.