‘St. Denis Medical’ Returns with Season 2
New season. New problems.
NBC’s medical mockumentary St. Denis Medical returns tonight, November 3, with a 2-episode premiere. Starring Allison Tolman, David Alan Grier, and Wendi McLendon-Covey, the medical staff at the underfunded Oregon hospital return with new problems but with the same restricted budget that threatens the sanity and patience of even the happiest of member of the team. The series also includes Mekki Leeper, Josh Lawson, Kayhun Kim, and Kiliko Kauahi, rounding out an incredibly hilarious ensemble in NBC’s hit medical series.
Created by Justin Spitzer and Eric Ledgin, St. Denis Medical takes place at a small-town hospital where a small but mighty group of medical professionals work tirelessly to give their community the best care possible under highly stressful and demanding circumstances. Joyce (Covey), the unconventional executive director, must find ways to acquire new equipment and funding while trying to maintain high patient satisfaction as well as job satisfaction. In typical mockumentary style, the series take you through the day-in-the-life of one of the most underpaid and undervalued professions—affording viewers the opportunity to both laugh and empathize with the characters as they simply just try to make it one day at a time.
Back to Reality
In episode 1, “Aloha, Everyone,” Alex (Tolman) returns from her Hawaiian vacation determined to bring that peace back into her work life. In season 1, she struggled with maintaining a feasible work-life balance, often allowing the stress, pressures, and demands of work to override her responsibilities to her family and to herself. However, newly promoted to charge nurse and recharged from a much needed break, Alex is determined to set boundaries in order to maintain her sanity.
Occupational Hazards
Episode 2, “Mama Bear Activated,” takes a bit of a serious turn as a member of the medical staff is attacked at the hospital. This raises conversations about the physical protections of hospital workers against aggressive and violent patients. Joyce must figure out how to best protect her staff while under extreme budget constraints and a lack of adequate physical security measures.
Hailed as anti-The Pitt, St. Denis Medical uses humor and satire to spark conversations about hospital workers and the conditions they are constantly asked to work under, even to their own physical and mental detriment. The beauty of this conversation with a series like St. Denis Medical is that it can explore the ridiculous nature of the impractical provisions staff members are asked to do for the safety of themselves and their patients through a comedic lens—forcing the audience to truly digest the elephant in the room in regard to healthcare and safe hospital conditions in America.
Season 2 of St. Denis Medical premieres Monday, November 3, at 8/7c on NBC. Episodes will be available to stream next day on Peacock.