9/7 Values in Grey's Anatomy

While I was previously noticing how the doctors on Grey's Anatomy interacted with each other, my focus has shifted more on their interactions with patients and how their common attributes affect the quality of their medical care. In my last blog post, I noted that the doctors have a lot of compassion for one another, while they are also in a constant competition to be the best. Not only do the doctors care for each other on the show, but they also care for their patients greatly. 

A primary example is main character Doctor Meredith Grey committing crimes for the sake of her patients' care, including insurance fraud and tampering with the randomization of a clinical trial. While she knows she will face severe consequences and compromise her professionalism in both instances, she goes through with them because not committing those crimes could cost the lives of her patients. Her willingness to prioritize her patients' wellbeing over legal and hospital standards portrays doctors as people who dedicate their lives to save others at any cost. While her choices are, of course, illegal and completely unprofessional, there is something to be said about leaving one's life in the hands of someone who will stop at nothing to protect it.

However, I have also taken notice of how the doctors' unrelenting determination to save each patient can actually interfere with patient care. For instance, Doctor Ben Warren is called into the psychology ward for an emergent surgical consult and, because he is in the psych ward, doesn't have any access to surgical instruments. In a panic, he breaks a clipboard and attempts to use it to perform immediate surgery on the patient. Doctor Warren is also stuck with a pregnant patient during a lockdown, and attempts a C-Section in the hallway, knowing fully well he was not yet qualified (as an intern) and was endangering her life. His actions are completely unethical and unsafe, as knows he should have taken the patients to a sterile operating room. However, he feels that the patients don't have any time left and feels compelled to take action, right or wrong, and ultimately, his choice costs the lives of the patient and child.

Compassion is rightfully expected of medical professionals, but Grey's Anatomy highlights the potential dangers of taking it too far, as the doctors time and time again face the tragic consequences of undermining the value of professionalism.