Brilliant Minds (2024) s01e02 Episode Script

1
We are all connected.
Genetically, all humans
are 99.9% identical.
Composed of the same elements.
Oxygen. Carbon. Hydrogen. Nitrogen.
Calcium. Phosphorus.
But society creates
barriers that separate us.
Disconnect us.
Sometimes we fear
those who are different.
Ignore them. Block them out.
Or simply look away.
What if we took a moment to stop?
Look? Listen?
Step outside of ourselves
and into their shoes?
Perhaps we could find a way to connect.
Hey, there. Hi. Um
My name is Oliver
Wolf. Uh, I'm a doctor.
- Are you okay?
- Everyone's just walking around,
acting like everything's normal.
I mean, I don't think that
there is any standard way
of being or perceiving.
- Do you see it, too?
- Uh, sure.
Just, um
Just remind me one more time,
exactly what are we seeing?
The dragon.
The dragon.
This is Pete.
He is in the throes
of an extremely vivid,
sustained hallucination of a dragon.
Oh, cool.
I mean, not for him. Like,
uh, medically speaking.
We talking Pokemon
dragon or Game of Thrones?
Dragonite is so baby. I love him.
I have no idea what any of that means,
but I would say whichever's scariest.
- Found his social.
- Let me guess.
Frat boy from Fordham?
- Bingo.
- How did you do that?
We get one like him
at least twice a week.
College kids gone wild in the big city.
Probably hit his head on a keg.
And now he needs our help.
Okay. We'll run labs and a UTox.
Hey, hey. Where did he come from?
I saved him.
From a dragon.
Of course you did.
Okay, well, make sure he
gets formally admitted.
You know, standard patient procedure.
You may have heard of it.
Chief wants to see us right away.
And do not make a dragon lady joke.
Your words, not mine.
Ericka, take point on
Pete. And not just labs.
I want to know exactly
what he's seeing and why.
- [KNOCK ON DOOR]
- Ah.
I'm having trouble with one
of my patients this morning.
Scheduled for a lap chole
for chronic cholelithiasis.
Why is the Chief Medical
Officer removing gallbladders?
Too many surgeries, not enough surgeons.
Anyway, as I was saying,
my patient has called off
her surgery this morning
because she had a disturbing dream.
Woke up feeling that she was
temporarily unable to move.
Sleep paralysis, pre-operative anxiety?
That's what I said. But
she has gotten hysterical.
She's expressed that she
doesn't feel listened to
or like she's being taken seriously.
And we all know how that can blow up
if she takes it to social media.
So you called us here because
you're concerned about optics?
No. I need neuro and psych evaluations.
Make sure she's safe for surgery.
We're doing our due diligence.
Yeah. Listening to her
and taking her seriously
seems like a great place to start.
We are on it, Chief.
Thank you.
Wait.
Your patient is Jessica Williams?
- Mm-hmm.
- As in Jessie from the block?
- Yes.
- Jessie from which block?
The boogie-down Bronx, baby.
WNBA All-Star, all time assist leader,
and just all around good people.
She retired last year,
and now she coaches a
local girls Varsity team.
She's a hometown hero.
My husband and daughter
and I, we never miss a game.
Oliver, may I have a word?
Carol, if you don't mind
I do not.
[MOUTHING WORDS]
Have a seat.
Am I in trouble?
I just wanted to reiterate
how happy I am that you're on the team.
There's no one who is more
devoted to their patients
than you. And everyone
in New York knows that.
I'm sensing a "but."
Well, where you get into trouble
is with the establishment.
Your disregard for rules.
Only when they get in the way
of what's best for my patients.
Yeah. Right.
So, this should help.
Please tell me you
did not write a memoir.
It's a manual outlining the
protocols for our hospital.
Sounds riveting.
Mugwump,
there aren't many
hospitals left in this town
that are willing to take a risk on you.
I may very well be your last chance.
Lucky me.
[SIGHS]
Outside hospital records
for the patient in Bed 4.
Thank you.
Good morning to you, too, Dr. Wolf.
[SCOFFS]
♪
[DOOR SHUTS]
Are you the brain doctor?
They told me to come and see you.
Jessie. Um
Yeah, uh, you can call
me Wolf. Or Oliver.
Did they tell you I was crazy?
I believe the word that
they used was hysterical,
which, by the way, our generation knows
not to say anymore.
Ever have one of those dreams
that feels so real, you can't shake it?
- Haunts you the rest of the day?
- All the time.
This is 100 times worse.
I can still feel it in my
body, like something is wrong.
Can you describe the dream for me?
I was in my bed.
But I was floating above,
looking down at myself.
And when I tried to move, I
I-I couldn't.
I felt disembodied.
That is agate.
The youngest of its kind is
almost 13 million years old.
That piece you're holding took
thousands of years to form,
molecule by molecule, layer by layer.
- I'm so sorry.
- No, no, no.
There's There's no need to apologize.
That's You know,
it's just a silly rock
that happens to be exceedingly rare.
Basketball players should
be better with their hands.
I don't know why this is happening.
You know, um, the mind
doesn't produce a nightmare
without a reason, much
like an agate can't form
without a preexisting rock.
Am I making any sense?
Shockingly, yes.
Good. I'd use a basketball analogy,
but I'm worried I'd "strike out."
Any, um, physical symptoms, Jessie?
I'm a little shaky, obviously.
I don't know if that's
physical or just in my head.
Well, when we have a bad dream,
our logic brain, the prefrontal cortex,
goes offline. It becomes physical.
Heart rate rises. Breathing quickens.
So you don't think
it's just psychosomatic?
No. What you're feeling is very real.
Now, it is my job to make
sure it's nothing serious.
So let's just run some
tests, and then my colleague
Dr. Pierce, uh, is gonna
spend some time with you.
A warning She is a fan.
[CHUCKLES]
Thanks for the heads up.
You're in good hands, Jessie.
We are gonna take care of you.
He has green, glowing scales.
These big, sharp, red talons.
And his eyes are like tiny,
dim light staring right at me.
Pete. Something like that?
Damn, Jacob. That's pretty good.
Wouldn't have pegged you
as the artist of the group.
Well, Dana, I am a man of many talents.
Can one of those talents be
checking Pete's UTox results?
Already done. Lab's backed up,
but Portia's rushing it for me.
- Who's Portia?
- Don't worry about it.
Pete, any of these look right?
Pete, what's wrong?
Are you seeing one right now? Dragon?
I think he's gonna hurl.
[VOMITS]
- Good catch. How's Pete?
- Extremely hungover.
Uh, give him a liter of
LR. Add thiamine and folate.
I need two volunteers to help
me with a workup on Jessie.
Uh, you two, let's go.
♪
Why am I always stuck babysitting bros
who O.D. on shrooms and
binge "House of the Dragon"?
You're describing me. Every Sunday.
Find anything?
Uh, these labs are all in the black,
but I want to give this
thing time to declare itself.
- We need to keep an eye on her.
- Too late.
She's going in for surgery.
Said she was feeling better,
said she wanted to get it
over with and get out of here.
Signed her paperwork and my ball.
Well, that must be nice,
to have a collectible.
Jessie broke my agate.
Your what? You know
what? I don't even
How did things go with your mom?
Oh, um, she gave me homework.
[CHUCKLES]
Really? I'm so glad you
find this funny, Carol.
I am having a really
hard time working here
at this hospital with her. It's like
being a kid again, and not in a fun way.
Wolf, you knew this would be hard.
Look. I've had a front row seat
to your mommy issues for years.
You two need to figure this thing out.
You are right. She can go first.
Jessie said she feels disembodied.
Don't you think that's such an
odd word choice? So specific.
Well, her psych eval came back benign.
Jessie did say that talking
to you made her feel better.
It's not surprising.
You've always had a
way with your patients.
Whatever it is you're doing with them,
you should try it with your mom.
- Is this her signature?
- Think so.
She filled out her consent
with the surgical resident.
No, it's completely different.
Look. It It looks like it was signed
by somebody with a different hand.
Perhaps by somebody
who feels disembodied.
When did she sign this basketball?
- About 2 1/2 hours ago.
- And the consent form?
Less than 30 minutes later.
You think she's declining?
Yes. And fast.
- You are not listening to me.
- Ma'am, I need you to relax.
I-I said I don't want to do this.
You will feel so much calmer
when the anesthesia kicks in.
- I'm not How are you gonna
- Stop! Hey.
Jessie, what's going on?
I was laying here
getting ready for surgery,
and something changed.
My body, it's like I'm not in it.
You mean like your nightmare?
It's coming true.
♪
♪
Jessie consented to the surgery.
What made you intervene?
- She changed her mind.
- Again?
Jessie expressed that her body
doesn't feel like it's hers.
To proceed with the operation
could cause irreparable
psychological damage,
let alone the physical harm
that could come from
operating on someone
with a progressive and
still undiagnosed condition.
- What have you found?
- Look. Here.
Same signature, less
than two hours apart.
That shows a significant decline
in fine motor functioning.
- Underlying causes?
- We don't know yet.
We'll get her straight to the MRI,
rule out stroke, tumor,
other abnormalities,
and bring you back
something more conclusive.
Let's figure this out.
Quickly, before it escalates.
Oliver, try not to get too attached.
We both know it hasn't
served you well in the past.
I do not get too attached.
[SCHOOL BELL RINGS]
Nice of you to grace us
with your presence, Oliver.
Take the seat next to Benedict.
Today, Oliver.
- That's not Benedict.
- [CLASSMATES CHUCKLING]
Perhaps if you spent a little less
time with your head in the clouds,
you'd know your
classmates' names by now.
[CLASSMATES CHUCKLING]
What's wrong with him?
Let's continue. Open your jars.
Place the cotton ball inside
to euthanize the specimen.
[FROGS CROAKING]
Hey, little buddy.
Oliver?
Oliver, where do you think you're going?
So, is this an official
medical examination?
I guess you could say so.
Your brain MRI was normal,
but something's going on.
I wanted to observe you in your element.
What position did you play?
Point guard. I ran the
offense, called out the plays,
made sure we all worked
together as a single unit.
A great team moves as a single body.
Now that's what I'm
trying to teach my girls.
- I'm guessing you don't play?
- Basketball? No.
[LAUGHS]
Team sports in general,
not really my thing.
PTSD from being the gay kid
who always got picked last in gym class.
Mm.
- What is it?
- I just
- It doesn't feel right.
- In what way?
It's like I'm outside my body,
like I'm watching a video of myself,
but I can't control it.
- Have you ever felt this before?
- In my dream,
and then when they were
prepping me for surgery.
It felt like my body is
dead, or not mine.
♪
♪
It's okay, Jessie.
We're gonna keep running
tests until we figure this out.
- [SIREN WAILS IN DISTANCE]
- Dr. Pierce.
You know the patient that
Dr. Wolf brought in? Pete?
Uh, the one he saved from the monster?
Dragon. I-If we're splitting hairs.
Uh, well, we ran additional tests,
and he's positive for LSD,
but he's still seeing dragons
24 hours after his
last dose. And Dana said
that acid typically
doesn't last that long,
so my gut tells me it
might be a psychotic break.
Thanks, Dr. Pierce.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, not so fast.
It's a drug-induced hallucination,
possibly tipping off his
first episode of psychosis.
- Doesn't that fall under psych?
- We don't know yet.
And Pete's your patient,
so you can't just skip off
and join Wolf on his mystery
disembodied case just yet.
Come on. You're coming with me.
So, Pete, have you ever been diagnosed
- with a mental health disorder?
- No.
- Any family history?
- Not that I know of,
unless you count Grandpa George
telling his entire golf club
he had syphilis. The man's a
nut, but he can still get it.
[CHUCKLES] Okay. Got it.
So, tell me about this dragon
I've been hearing about.
- Do you see it right now?
- Yeah.
But when I was tripping,
it felt so intense.
- And now?
- I still see it, but
I know it's not really there.
- It's not real.
- Got it.
I'm just gonna speak with
Dr. Kinney for a moment.
He's aware that the
dragon is a hallucination.
A psychotic break is
fundamentally characterized
by a loss of contact with reality.
If he can distinguish between
what's real and what isn't
Then he's still in touch with reality.
Which means
This is a neuro case.
Have fun, Doctor.
My sister's team has playoffs next week.
The girls are asking
if she's gonna be okay.
You tell them we are
doing everything we can
to get her back to them ASAP.
How you feeling, Jessie?
Well, I don't love the
sound of a spinal tap,
but if it gives us a medical
explanation for my air ball,
- I'm all for it.
- [BOTH CHUCKLE]
Dr. Markus is gonna collect a
sample of cerebral spinal fluid.
The results will let us know
if you have an infection or inflammation
that's causing your symptoms.
Uh, would you mind leaning
forward just a little? Thank you.
Take deep breaths.
Everything okay there, Dr. Markus?
Yeah. Just, uh Just didn't
think I'd have an audience.
[EXHALES SLOWLY]
[INHALES SHARPLY] Damn it.
- Van
- Take this. I can't do this.
All good.
You might feel a little pinch, okay?
3, 2, 1.
Good job.
Dr. Markus?
What happened in there?
I-I don't know. I got overwhelmed.
Yeah, well, that's obvious, but why?
It's, like, this thing that happens.
I-It was like I could feel
the pain from the needle.
And not to mention your disappointment
and Jacob's judgment, and
her whole family is watching,
and just I was a mess.
Well, I'd call that
an accurate assessment.
A lumbar puncture is a
basic procedure, Dr. Markus.
- I-I know
- Jessie is already terrified.
And you may have just
scared her even more.
Figure this out.
"Chapter 4, billing procedures.
When logging patient notes,
a physician must follow" a long
list of bureaucratic nonsense
that improves the health of no one
and bends to the insurance lobby,
because lest you forget,
medicine is a for-profit industry.
[BASKETBALL GAME PLAYS
ON TV, TELEPHONE RINGS]
Yeah, this is Wolf.
I'll be right there.
Okay, so her tap was clear, Dr. Wolf.
But I-I don't understand
what's going on.
- Okay, well, what happened, Jacob?
- Well, we found her like this. I
I
Jessie?
Jessie, can you can you
put your arms down for me?
[SHAKILY] I can't.
I-I can't control them.
It's okay. It's okay.
I'm gonna help you.
Okay. It's okay. Just breathe.
Okay. Here we go.
We're gonna just walk
it off, okay? So
Alright, can you can you
just take a couple of steps
toward Dr. Nash?
♪
[GASPING]
- I-I can't.
- What is it now?
Tell me Tell me,
what are you feeling?
Like there's no ground to stand on.
I can't walk. I can't even stand.
What is happening to me?
Okay, things just got really weird.
I'll say it. Van gives good head.
Is this punishment for
my failed lumbar puncture?
No. You're helping
me illustrate a point.
- [INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS]
- Everyone, shush.
Okay, right now, when Van looks down,
he's unaware of his body's
presence or position.
He's essentially blind to his body.
That's what Jessie is experiencing
a very specific nerve damage
resulting in total
proprioceptive deficit
from her toes to her head.
It is often said proprioception
is our sixth sense.
You mean she sees dead people?
No. What?
Uh, but her body feels dead to her,
like in her dream. Her brain
knew something was wrong
before her body showed any symptoms.
- Literally a horror movie.
- Okay, Van,
hold up your hand in
front of your face. Right?
Okay, so Jessie can see
her hand in this position,
but the moment it moves
outside the field of vision,
it's like she no longer
has a hand at all.
Well, she's an athlete. Can
her loss of proprioception
be from an old spine
injury or contusion?
Good idea. Look into it.
- Can we turn the lights back on?
- Yes.
Or a cavernous malformation
in the dorsal column
of her posterior cord.
We should scan her again,
the entire spine this time.
- Get those to me ASAP.
- I'm pretty sure this happened
to a friend of mine who
got way too into Whippets.
That reminds me, how's the
frat boy who sees dragons?
- Pete?
- Yeah.
Well, his CT brain, CSF,
and EEG are all unrevealing.
We're still waiting on a few labs,
but if it isn't drugs or psychosis
We know that sustained hallucination
doesn't just come out of nowhere.
That's right. It's got to be connected.
- Let's keep digging.
- [KNOCK ON DOOR]
Mugwump? A word?
♪
Excuse me.
♪
- Mugwump?
- What even is that?
I don't know, but it's embarrassing,
and my mom calls me
her little butter bean.
Wait, wait, Dr. Wolf is the Chief's son?
Dude, duh.
Did you seriously not
google your new boss?
So help me understand how a
patient walks into my hospital
for a routine surgery and
now may never walk again.
I was trying to solve that
before I was interrupted.
- It could be viral.
- Well, we're looking into it
Autoimmune, bacterial,
environmental exposure.
And if we don't know what caused it,
we don't know how to stop it
or how far it could progress.
I said I am on it.
Now, against my better judgment,
perhaps, we are colleagues now.
So no more pet names.
And stop micromanaging me.
Do your job, and I won't have to.
[SCOFFS]
♪
I didn't want to kill the frogs.
I want to be a doctor. Do no harm.
I know.
You're not in trouble, honey.
I brought you here so
you can learn to dissect
the proper way.
- Who is that?
- It's a body that a person chose
to donate to the medical school,
so aspiring doctors can learn
and one day help people.
♪
Okay.
So, you start at the collarbone.
Once you're through the
sternum, you'll see the heart.
It won't be easy, Mugwump.
You'll have to cut
deeper than you expect.
♪
- [KNOCK ON DOOR]
- Dr. Wolf. Hey. You paged me?
I did, 20 minutes ago. It's about time.
I was in surgery. What do you need?
Ah, I need a consult
on my patient Jessie.
Acute, severe proprioceptive deficit.
She came in for an elective
surgery, and now she can't walk.
It's moving fast. I have
never seen anything like this.
Is that how this works? You, uh
You only acknowledge me
when you need something?
Come on. You keep
blowing past me out there.
- What? When?
- Today,
on three separate occasions.
- Why are you counting?
- It's rude, okay?
- It's rude. You are rude.
- No.
I have prosopagnosia.
It is a neurological condition.
It means I can't recognize faces.
Okay, so how does it work for you?
- How do you recognize people?
- Um, defining characteristics.
Style, gait triggers my
temporal cortex, or
deep crow's feet,
ghostly white complexion.
Do you want me to check
if you have a pulse?
Let's go back to you ignoring me.
Okay. You can read an MRI
as well as I can, Dr. Wolf.
You and I both know
there's nothing here.
- So why did you call me?
- Well, sometimes
even the most brilliant
doctors need a second opinion.
Nichols I'm worried about her.
Well, hopefully the fact there's
nothing to resect is good news.
Hey, Coach, can I ask
you a personal question?
Okay, ESPN. Shoot.
When you retired, you
were in your prime.
Were you hiding an injury or something?
No, I was just ready.
Well, it couldn't have been that easy.
I mean, you were a star.
You averaged like
Sure, I was scared to leave the game.
But once I did, I knew it was right.
When I started coaching,
something just clicked.
I knew it was what I
was supposed to be doing
with my whole life.
You know, um,
I was a quarterback back in the day.
- Played D1.
- Damn!
How'd you end up in scrubs?
Um, one too many concussions.
Mm. Well, it seems you got a
good head on your shoulders,
even if it is a little banged up.
If I can't walk again
can't move
I don't want to let my girls down.
This is a tough place to grow up.
And a tough time to be a kid.
Am I gonna be okay?
Hey, Coach J,
you have plenty of court-side
huddles left in you, trust me,
okay? And while you're
here, we're your team.
And we're not giving
up until we fix this.
I promise.
You should try to get some rest.
♪
I think I know the cause.
Smoothies. Jessie
drinks them all the time,
and they're loaded with supplements.
Then I rechecked her blood work,
and her B6 levels are high.
So the pyridoxine toxicity from the B6
could have caused the
proprioceptive damage,
which means
There's hope.
He's been sleeping a lot.
Hasn't been to class in a month.
Classic Pete.
Doesn't have to care about
grades. He's a legacy.
Of course he is.
[INDISTINCT CONVERSATIONS IN DISTANCE]
I'll check the fridge for mold.
Mycotoxins could be the culprit.
What is that smell?
I'm getting notes of weed
and, uh, booze-soaked carpet.
Reminds me of the good, old days.
Man, it's been so long
since I've shotgunned a beer.
- [CHUCKLES AWKWARDLY]
- You know, like
[IMITATES GULPING]
[CHUCKLES] Yeah.
Oh, my God. You've never
shotgunned a beer before.
Uh
Keg stands, Edward 40 hands, beer pong?
- Did you have any fun in college?
- Listen, I would have loved
to have gone to parties.
I would have loved
to have been a legacy.
I would have loved to have
slacked off and skipped class
and been hungover all
day, but I was busy
busting my butt to get into med school
while working two jobs to pay for it.
It is so rank in here!
- The dragon.
- Uh-oh.
You seeing him, too?
♪
Jessie?
We are almost done flushing your system
to see if it helps your symptoms.
- Jessie?
- Coach J?
We were just giving her
fluids. What's going on?
She was alert a minute ago.
Her lungs are clear, so
fluids aren't the problem.
[MONITOR FLATLINING]
Her O-2 sat is dropping,
and she's unresponsive.
Get the crash cart.
[ALARM BLARING]
Let's go, let's go!
[INDISTINCT ANNOUNCEMENT OVER INTERCOM]
She's not breathing!
Come on, Van. Come on, Van. Come on.
- No pulse.
- I'll start compressions.
We can't bag forever. We
need to intubate her now.
- Where's anesthesia?
- They're coming.
- Go, go.
- [PEOPLE SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY]
Come on, Coach J. Come
on. Come on, Coach.
We got you.
♪
♪
We flushed her system,
hoping that it would
slow or reverse the
progression of her symptoms.
Unfortunately, she's still
not breathing on her own,
which means that perhaps the
B6 wasn't the cause after all.
But even though we don't know the cause,
we're still looking for a solution.
My big sister has always been
invincible.
- How is this happening to her?
- You have to understand
how exceedingly rare
your sister's case is.
I mean, I've read of
similar deteriorations,
but nothing this fast.
And it's possible we
may never know the cause.
Are you saying this is permanent?
I don't know yet.
But what I can tell you
is that all of you
her family, her team
give her purpose.
That's what Jessie needs right now.
A reason to get better.
First Van, now you.
You interns are a real time suck.
- What happened?
- Nothing. I just
stepped out to finish some notes.
Okay, well, we don't walk out
on patients to finish notes.
You don't think I already
feel crappy enough?
I told Jessie she would get better.
I looked her right in the
eye, and I lied to her.
Yeah, that's not great.
But contrary to popular
belief, doctors are humans, too.
Sometimes we need hope
to be better at our jobs.
And sometimes we need to
know when hope is not enough.
And what about you?
- Have you lost hope?
- No. For Jessie's sake,
I can't afford to. And neither can you.
Dr. Wolf?
We need you to see Pete's MRI.
- Hallucinatory palinopsia.
- Yeah.
As soon as we saw the dragon
outside Pete's frat house,
we realized that it isn't
just some random hallucination.
It's like a memory,
an image he's been seeing
outside his window every day
that his brain's visual memory
area keeps causing him to see,
even when it's not
directly in front of him.
Which only happens
when there's a lesion.
Right here. The noncon C
never could have picked that up.
An occipital lobe dural
arteriovenous fistula,
causing a buildup of blood
and venous hypertension
- in the occipital lobe.
- Causing visual disturbances
- like palinopsia.
- The lesion could bleed out
into his brain at any moment, can't it?
I'm off to prep the O.R.
♪
How's our frat boy?
Uh, he's in surgery. It's delicate.
Well, Nichols is one of the best.
Oh, "one of." That
doesn't inspire confidence.
I heard Jessie had visitors today.
Yes. It's really important for
her to maintain a connection
- to her community, her purpose.
- I agree.
And I've been meaning to
talk to you about this.
If she doesn't improve
in the next few weeks,
we're gonna have to talk about a trach
and long-term care facilities.
Ship her off to be forgotten
so you can free up a bed? Not an option.
Unfortunately, it's not your call.
Well, whose call is it, Carol?
My mother's?
This is why I didn't want to
work here. Jessie is my patient.
I determine her course of
care based on who she is,
what's important to her,
and what she would choose.
And I don't like you doing
my mother's bidding
- I'm not doing your mother's
- Look, Carol, I've known you
for 20 years.
Never play poker.
Hey. I know you don't want to hear this,
but your mother isn't always wrong.
Without knowing the
etiology, we have to assume
that Jessie's nerve damage is permanent.
Proprioception is necessary
for breathing, too,
which means that if this is permanent,
- she won't be able to breathe
- Exactly.
And she's getting weaker
the longer she lays there
not using or even trying
to use her muscles.
You put her in long-term care,
next it'll be pneumonia, then bedsores.
She'll never walk, talk,
or breathe again on her own.
And her team needs her.
They cannot see her quit.
See her quit or you?
Wolf, I know this is hard,
but this is what you do.
You get too attached.
Who is that?
Yes, this is John Doe.
No ID, no medical history, no family.
Transferred from hospital to hospital
every time he gets a new
infection. Now he's ours.
No one knows who he is
or where he came from.
Diagnosis?
Uh, stroke?
Whatever it is, it's
not salvageable now.
Whoever John Doe was is gone.
And this is what happens
when no one gets attached.
[BACH'S "CELLO SUITE NO. 1" PLAYING]
[WOLF PANTING]
♪
I couldn't do it.
I picked up the scalpel,
and I froze. I couldn't move.
Hey, kiddo. It's okay.
No, it's not. I couldn't
even make the first incision.
- Forget all that.
- I don't want to.
I want to be a doctor, like you and Mom.
Alright.
♪
Next time, try this.
Step outside yourself.
Don't worry about the entire
cadaver in front of you.
Start small.
Just focus on your hand.
I believe in you.
Enough for the both of us.
[WOLF PANTING]
[BASKETBALL GAME PLAYING ON TV]
♪
We're taking out Jessie's tube.
We're gonna stop her precedex,
reduce the vent settings
to minimal support,
loosen the breathing tube,
and get ready to deflate the cuff.
Dr. Wolf, she could die.
Yeah, she can't breathe on her own.
Jessie can't move her body
because she's suddenly blind
to it. It's overwhelming.
But what if she steps
outside of herself?
What if she uses her other
senses to control her body?
Starting small, focusing
on one body part at a time.
It's not that her muscles are weak.
It's not that she
can't breathe. She can.
She just doesn't know it
yet, because she has to learn
to connect with her
body in a brand-new way.
And the longer we wait,
the weaker she gets,
and the more she loses hope.
I mean, if we don't believe in her,
how is she supposed
to believe in herself?
Let's get in there.
Let's do this.
He gives locker room speeches now?
Clear eyes, full hearts, can't breathe.
Jessie?
Will you run a drill with
me? Just the two of us.
When we take out the breathing tube,
I want to see your
breath on this tray, okay?
Now, in order to do that,
I want you to embrace your
feelings of disembodiment.
Look at yourself from the outside,
focus on your chest in space,
and then use your eyes
to imagine it moving.
Can you do that for me?
[VENTILATOR HISSING]
♪
[AIR HISSING, ALARMS BEEPING]
♪
[ALARMS STOP]
Step outside of yourself.
Start small.
One breath.
[MONITORS BEEPING RAPIDLY]
♪
I know you can do this, Jessie.
I know you can.
Come on.
I believe in you.
♪
Enough for the both of us.
♪
[JESSIE EXHALES SOFTLY]
[JESSIE WHEEZING WEAKLY]
♪
Oh, my God.
Good job.
[JESSIE CONTINUES WHEEZING]
Jessie has been working Incredibly hard.
She's made great progress.
- I want to manage your expectations
- Wolf.
It's okay. Let's just show them.
♪
♪
♪
♪
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
- Jessie.
Don't. I got it.
♪
♪
♪
How about a huddle?
[ALL CHUCKLE]
Yes.
♪
♪
Thank you.
For not giving up on me.
Right back at you, Coach.
Jessie.
Once Jessie was able to
breathe on her own again,
she needed to relearn how
to move the rest of her body
using vision and touch
instead of proprioception.
We started small
one hand and a piece of paper.
It takes practice.
But just like in basketball,
you start with the fundamentals,
teaching different parts
of the body to move as one,
just like players on one team.
We'll likely never know what
caused Jessie's nerve damage.
But with a lot of
patience and strong will,
Jessie is reconnecting with
her body in a brand-new way.
It takes hard work for a group
of players to come together.
It might even seem
impossible, until you try.
♪
I know working together
is not gonna be easy.
That said, I want to try.
Okay. Now I'm sensing a "but."
Never attempt to transfer
one of my patients
without discussing
it with me ever again.
I only said that to Carol
to light a fire under you.
I don't care. That's annoying, too.
Oh, and that John Doe in ICU?
- What about him?
- He's mine.
That's my patient now.
♪
I connected with your dad.
- He's on his way.
- Thanks.
And Dr. Nichols says you
should be out in a few days.
You saved me.
- In a way, the dragon saved you.
- [CHUCKLES]
It was signaling something was wrong.
I just needed to look closer.
Well, I'm lucky you spend all
your Friday nights in the library.
I mean, I'm assuming.
[LAUGHS]
Good thing it's not too late
for both of us to have a life.
My bias could have cost Pete his life.
Am I a judgey bitch?
You don't get to answer that.
Ericka, you made a mistake. It happens.
We're interns. We're
supposed to screw up.
Van fumbled a simple
LP. Sports reference!
And I gave a patient,
you know, false hope.
And I'm perfect, of course.
But I have to give you
all something to aspire to.
- Ah.
- Flanagan!
Three beers. In a can.
Why do we need beers?
What What are you doing?
I'm not doing anything.
- You're clearly up to something.
- Sweet baby angel.
You're shotgunning your first beer.
- Yo.
- Tonight.
Yes!
It's been so long
since I went dancing ♪
Dancing ♪
It's been so long, it's
been so long, been so long ♪
♪
So, the post-op should
be waking up soon,
and we'll need Q2 hour neuro checks.
Thank you.
♪
Oh, hey, Nichols.
I'm just kidding. Good job with Pete.
Thank you. Oh, hey, uh,
since you finally recognized me,
what defining feature did you land on?
Oh, you know, in the end,
it was the, um, freakishly large hands.
- [LAUGHS]
- Honestly, how do you perform
brain surgery with those
things? They're liabilities.
Oh, uh, one more question.
Is the anatomy lab still here?
♪
What are we doing?
Well, it's harder to
empathize with a cadaver.
They have fewer feelings.
Go ahead. Let's see
your best spinal tap.
♪
I'm so grateful to you.
Having Oliver home, it just
It means everything.
And he would never
have agreed to work here
if you hadn't convinced him.
[CHUCKLES]
He really trusts you.
That's why I'm going to need
you to keep an eye on him.
Muriel, I am not gonna
be his babysitter.
I had a feeling you were gonna say that.
But there are things about my son's past
that even you don't know.
♪
♪
♪
♪