S04.E08: Play By My Rules

[WendyCR72]

Dr. Charles struggles to convince Dr. Choi that surgery isn't always the answer. Dr. Rhodes finds himself in hot water with Goodwin when he disobeys her direct order. April becomes frustrated with Maggie when she continues to question her leadership role as the stand-in charge nurse. Dr. Manning suspects Dr. Halstead is keeping something from her.

[Fireball]

I'm like 10 minutes into the show, and I already want to punch April. 

[cathmed]

OK - so it may be short lived but glad to see Dr. Choi  and VA Doctor Vicky taking another chance with each other?   I truly wish/want him to move on but i think we all know this "tension" between April and him will be resolved (*sigh*).    April has gotten exactly what she deserved!  And poor Maggie - guess she just realized that she's not indispensable; welcome to the real world! Manstead - first: Halstead has taken risks with patients the last couple of episodes.  He was almost fired and was sued; you'd think he'd be more careful every time he makes a medical decision that could result in death--or simply not abiding by the patients wishes/putting them at risk.    Secondly, holier than thou Manning going to Goodwin and instituting an "emergency" committee - seriously?   But lastly, Manstead deserves each other and I was rooting for them to both hurl themselves off the building  at the end- just put me out of  my misery.   And speaking of misery - Bekker and Rhodes; she's so turned on by his bravado/strength/hubris  and then to morph into that "sexy" scene - I actually changed the channel!    As many of us have said, ad nauseum, no chemistry so just please stop with the  alleged hot, sexy love scenes.

The COTW - rather sad that both daughter and father died but it seems a bit incredulous that there was absolutely;y no one who could verify if the DNR tattoo was real and/or if his wishes remained the same.   "Scratchy" girl - implausible but at least a solution to what I thought was just a psychosomatic problem which I guess, in a sense, it was.   Dr. Charles seems to be practicing more medicinal remedies rather than practicing psychiatry but it was all linked together.  Arrogant Sam (neurosurgeon) - but that's what surgeons do--they want to cut.    And what's up with Goodwin?  They haven't shown the CEO for a couple of weeks but Sharon certainly seems to be feeling the pressure of the hybrid room.   The way the writing has been this season, I'm glad for this brief respite and it may be the last season I watch if things, e.g, characters, writing, etc., don't improve quickly.

[mommalib]

Rhodes was a arrogant dick and it almost makes me wish he would keep pushing so Goodwin would fire his ass. Don't even get me started on the not sexy stuff between him and that chick.

[SuzieQ]

15 minutes ago, mommalib said:

Rhodes was a arrogant dick and it almost makes me wish he would keep pushing so Goodwin would fire his ass. Don't even get me started on the not sexy stuff between him and that chick.

 

23 minutes ago, cathmed said:

And speaking of misery - Bekker and Rhodes; she's so turned on by his bravado/strength/hubris  and then to morph into that "sexy" scene - I actually changed the channel!    As many of us have said, ad nauseum, no chemistry so just please stop with the  alleged hot, sexy love scenes.

Ditto and UGH!!  Those two literally make me cringe.  There is nothing sexy about their scenes and they are a total gagfest!

Edited November 15, 2018 by SuzieQ

[Chick2Chic]

Rhekker sucks and I feel like Connor is turning into an ass cause of the time he is spending with Ava. I see the official show instagram is pimping Rhekker too. Ugh.

Meh ep overall.

[LittleIggy]

My boyfriend Dr. Abrams was back! Yay! ? The patient digging into her scalp made me cringe. ? That would be a terrible condition to have.

Hey, Will, if a dude has “Do not resuscitate” tattooed in big letters on his chest, I think he means it. I agreed with Natalie (I hate to say that) that the little girl’s organs shouldn’t go to waste.

[preeya]

11 minutes ago, LittleIggy said:

My boyfriend Dr. Abrams was back! Yay! ? The patient digging into her scalp made me cringe. ? That would be a terrible condition to have.

Hey, Will, if a dude has “Do not resuscitate” tattooed in big letters on his chest, I think he means it. I agreed with Natalie (I hate to say that) that the little girl’s organs shouldn’t go to waste.

The tattoo guy should have had it notarized with another tat right below. That way asshat Manstead ("I took an oath") would have known it was for real.

[watcher1006]

These stories featuring Connor Rhodes M.D., superhero surgeon are getting tiresome. There wasn't even any question about whether his high risk procedure was going to succeed, it always does.

The tension between Maggie and April seemed a bit contrived. A request for PTO from a staff member isn't an emergency. I would think April would just defer a decision like that on a routine matter, telling the requester to wait till Maggie got back. That seems most logical to me.

[Ohwell]

I know it's a trope on medical shows, but  I'm tired of staff humping each other, leaving bodily fluids and god knows what else that's unsanitary lying around on surfaces that are supposed to be sterile.  I mean, these are hospitals, not some scummy bar bathrooms. 

I fear that Choi will get back with April at some point, and that makes me sad and angry.  I hope I'm proven wrong.

[preeya]

8 hours ago, watcher1006 said:

These stories featuring Connor Rhodes M.D., superhero surgeon are getting tiresome. There wasn't even any question about whether his high risk procedure was going to succeed, it always does.

The tension between Maggie and April seemed a bit contrived. A request for PTO from a staff member isn't an emergency. I would think April would just defer a decision like that on a routine matter, telling the requester to wait till Maggie got back. That seems most logical to me.

1

She did say it was pending for three weeks. (Either approve or deny it.)

I thought Maggie was a bit "over the top" with her rules/manual for coverage of her duties.

Edited November 15, 2018 by preeya

[Netfoot]

Why do I watch this crap?

[Epeolatrix]

Here's an interesting BBC article on the use of mirror therapy to help people with phantom limb problems.

[NYCFree]

I must have missed something in the hybrid OR/ER story. If there were three open surgery rooms upstairs, why on earth would they need to schedule a routine gall bladder surgery in the one suregery room inside the ER? Why would that change the bottom line of the hospital at all?

Also, I love how they acknowledge that most ulcers are caused by bacteria, then go right on exhibiting symptoms when Halstead is stressed. My prediction is that he will collapse at a key moment during the wedding or reception.

[starri]

On 11/15/2018 at 1:05 AM, preeya said:

The tattoo guy should have had it notarized with another tat right below.

There was a case in which a patient with a DNR tattoo, complete with his signature, at a hospital in Miami a year ago.  He was unresponsive, and no one quite knew what to do about it.  They decided to withhold the most aggressive life support measures (I assume that meant multiple pressors and any invasive procedures), and they did eventually find a written advanced directive from him.  But that guy was 70 with multiple serious health conditions.  

I can't decide if the show has finally hit hatewatch levels.

[Happy Belly]

I really don’t know why I continue to keep this show on my OnePass for TiVo, let alone. to keep watching it. I spend more time complaining about these characters then I do following the show. Anyone does whatever the heck they want with no repercussions.  

I did mention to my family that the woman with the never ending itch should be checked tosee if she just stopped taking Zyrtec. When I stopped using it, I had the zyrtec itch for 15 miserable days. Doctors told me it was in my head so when I came home, I googled and was so happy to read so many others had the same fate as I did when they stopped taking it. I will never put another tablet in my mouth again, but then again, I thankfully did not scratch a hole in my head.

[statsgirl]

I guess Manning's god complex is catching because Halstead too over the role today.Natalie was right to go to Goodwin but she should have told Will that  she was going to do it.

I kept wondering why a man who was the sole parent of a young child would put a DNR on his chest. A parent has a responsibility so if you want to have a DNR, make sure there is a paper in your wallet explaining who is her guardian if something happens to him.,

20 hours ago, NYCFree said:

I must have missed something in the hybrid OR/ER story. If there were three open surgery rooms upstairs, why on earth would they need to schedule a routine gall bladder surgery in the one suregery room inside the ER? Why would that change the bottom line of the hospital at all?

Are surgeries in the US paid to the department where they are done (ER, OR)?  I can't figure out why it was important for Sharon to have the gall bladder surgery, which could have been done in the OR, done in the ER unless the insurance paid the ER itself.  (Here the money goes to the hospital overall budget.)

It was a pissing contest between Rhodes and the new ER chief (who is a complete waste of airtime). Sharon had a good point, that it's too costly to keep empty but ER guy deliberately schedule his surgery to use the hybrid room to show Rhodes he's the boss. Bekker is ruining Connor.

April needs to get over herself. Even if she thinks she's got it, she should shut up and listen to Maggie who's been doing the job for years. I wish that the show didn't love April so much.  Maggie is not replaceable,at least not by her.

Go, Ethan, go get your old girlfriend back.

[starri]

8 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

 Bekker is ruining Connor.

Honestly, I think the OR ruined Connor, and he's threatening to pull Maggie down with him.  Not so much on a character level, but just in terms of the kinds of stories she can have.  Being Connor's scrub nurse is just a plot dead end.

Honest to God, I found Natalie less objectionable in this episode than Connor, and she still did some pretty terrible things.

[Netfoot]

21 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

Sharon had a good point, that it's too costly to keep empty but ER guy deliberately schedule his surgery to use the hybrid room to show Rhodes he's the boss.

The idea for the EROR came about because the regular ORs were too often busy.  Now, if you have 3 (or 30) regular ORs and they are always busy, AND you have the funds to create another OR, why not simply create a fourth (or 31st) regular OR? Why create an EROR which will sit underutilized most of the time?  Unless you schedule regular surgeries in it, thereby rendering it a regular OR after all?

Because draaaaama!

No, it's obvious that the creation of the EROR was an ERROR.

[limecoke]

This show is generally a load of crap but I can verify that phantom itch is a very real phenomenon.  However, it does not disappear in a few moments, it can take months maybe more to retrain the brain.  

With three OR’s open upstairs, why couldn’t the gall bladder go up there?

Sex on the surgical sink?  Why not...it’s Chicago Med.  

Shut up, April.  

Edited November 18, 2018 by limecoke

[statsgirl]

2 hours ago, starri said:

Honestly, I think the OR ruined Connor, and he's threatening to pull Maggie down with him.  Not so much on a character level, but just in terms of the kinds of stories she can have.  Being Connor's scrub nurse is just a plot dead end.

They have no idea what to do with Connor. Or Maggie, who is taking a demotion from charge nurse to scrub nurse so they don't have to pay another actor.

Colin Donnell is handsome enough and Rhodes is screwed up enough in his family history that he could be a Doug Ross type if they would go that way. He was good in season 1 when he was a hotshot competing with Will. He was also good while being mentored by the Hawaiian shirted Dr. Downey, and season 2 had a good bromance with Dr. Latham. But since then there's been nothing notable about him except that terrible "romance" with Bekker.

But it's the same with Choi who has been pulled down by always needing to be on the opposite side of any discussion with April. The show has got two hot, handsome guys and it's wasting them both because it doesn't know how to highlight them.

1 minute ago, Netfoot said:

The idea for the EROR came about because the regular ORs were too often busy.

And also because it took too long to get an emergency patient up to the OR. At least that was the show's logic.

My question is why the ER chief is doing a routine gall bladder surgery? Wouldn't the patient want a surgeon doing it rather than an emergency physician?

[alexvillage]

On 11/16/2018 at 11:59 PM, NYCFree said:

I must have missed something in the hybrid OR/ER story. If there were three open surgery rooms upstairs, why on earth would they need to schedule a routine gall bladder surgery in the one suregery room inside the ER? Why would that change the bottom line of the hospital at all?

Also, I love how they acknowledge that most ulcers are caused by bacteria, then go right on exhibiting symptoms when Halstead is stressed. My prediction is that he will collapse at a key moment during the wedding or reception.

The OR thing confused me too. I don't think hospitals bill differently for different Ors. I mean, we basically pay the OR rental and then everything else is itemized so it makes no sense. Unless they are claiming that an OR in the physical space of an ER HAS to be more expensive because whatever.

I never had to use an ER in a big city so I don't know if that's realistic. All these medical shows have so many doctors in the ER, it that how it is. Because if smaller towns you have one doctor, some PA's, lots of nurses. Maybe two doctors. But never all the doctors. Also, girl and dad should have been admitted, but they remained in the ER? 

[Trees]

Where is the original heart doctor?  I can't remember his name - the autistic guy.  

[statsgirl]

I miss Latham.  I wish they would move Rhodes back to the surgical department instead of the ER.

5 hours ago, alexvillage said:

I never had to use an ER in a big city so I don't know if that's realistic. All these medical shows have so many doctors in the ER, it that how it is. Because if smaller towns you have one doctor, some PA's, lots of nurses. Maybe two doctors. But never all the doctors.

I worked as a ward clerk in a city ER while I was in university (Best. Job. Ever. if you like people and keeping busy) and yes, there were a lot of doctors around. So many that the ER was split into about four sections (quick work like wounds and breaks, qssessment and out, long  care, longer stay) and there was a triage nurse to get people through faster. Never all the doctors of course but it's a TV show so people want to see the characters they watch for.

[RedbirdNelly]

On ‎11‎/‎16‎/‎2018 at 10:59 PM, NYCFree said:

I must have missed something in the hybrid OR/ER story. If there were three open surgery rooms upstairs, why on earth would they need to schedule a routine gall bladder surgery in the one suregery room inside the ER? Why would that change the bottom line of the hospital at all?

Also, I love how they acknowledge that most ulcers are caused by bacteria, then go right on exhibiting symptoms when Halstead is stressed. My prediction is that he will collapse at a key moment during the wedding or reception.

I had the same thought on the ORs; why was the gall bladder person there? move him upstairs?

the scalp itch patient was hard to watch. I  know it's a medical show but I kept not looking away fast enough.

[Chas411]

Connor and Bekler continue to be an absolute cringefest. While one of the weakest parts of this show is its inability to write decent female characters. Another disaster is it’s reluctance to admit when a character/ship just is not working - Bekker and Bekker/Rhodes. The sex scene at the end was awkward and just uncomfortable to watch.