Grey’s Anatomy does a fantastic job of keeping viewers on the very edge of their seats, showcasing the fine line between life and death. Grey Sloan is often depicted as one of the best hospitals in Seattle, which allows the surgeons to be masters in their field and experiment with different research. But even the best in the business slip up sometimes.
It’s normal for those surgeons to make a mistake every now and then, but some of these doctors have made fatal errors. To make matters worse, very few of them received any reasonable punishment. Thus, it seems that the staff at Grey Sloan are not as perfect as the hospital suggests.
A Sleep-Deprived and Grief-Stricken Doctor Nearly Killed Karev’s Dad
Season 10, Episode 12, “Get Up, Stand Up”
Shane Ross quickly rubbed fans up the wrong way with his over-confident personality and inability to listen to his superiors. Yet, the young aback when he almost killed Alex Karev’s dad in “Get Up, Stand Up”. James Evans was rushed into the hospital with a heart attack and was immediately rushed to the OR.
Although Ross said that he could handle it, the doctor had been self-medicating with energy drinks. Later, there were complications with Evans’ surgery, but Ross was determined that he could fix them. Finally, Leah Murphy went to go and get Dr. Webber so that Shane could take some time to calm down and rest. Although Webber was sympathetic towards his co-worker’s exhaustion, Ross needed to be reprimanded for his reckless behavior.
Izzie Ruined a Transplant Patient’s Chance of a Happy Future
Season 6, Episode 5, “Invasion”
By Season 6, Izzie Stevens had been through so much, including a breakup, cancer, and the loss of her first love. So, it makes sense that her head would be a bit frazzled, but a simple miscalculation forced a patient to give up their dreams of having a kidney. Although an organ was available for the patient, Stevens misread her notes and placed the woman in a 0 K bath.
Not only did this suck all of the vital potassium out of her body, but it also caused her to have a seizure. It should be mentioned that this happened on the day of the Mercy West merger, so it’s understandable that she would not be very present. Izzie was obviously very upset, but that doesn’t excuse her sloppy professionalism or how her actions impacted a patient’s future.
A Prestigious Doctor Operated Under the Influence
Season 6, Episode 12, “I Like You So Much Better When You’re Naked”
Not only is Richard Webber one of the show’s longest-running characters, but he’s also considered to be the heart and soul of the hospital. However, this charming man harbors a dark secret; he’s an alcoholic. After years of faithful sobriety, Richard falls off the wagon in “An Honest Mistake.”
Derek Shepherd is keen to confront Webber about his drinking, especially while on the job. Although a lot of fans empathize with Webber’s struggles, the vast majority of audiences believe that he should have been fired for operating while drunk. Instead, the Chief resigned on his own accord and didn’t have to face the consequences of his own actions.
Derek Shepherd Didn’t Know When to Stop
Season 5, Episode 16, “An Honest Mistake”
“An Honest Mistake” introduces audiences to Jen Harmon, a pregnant lady who continues to suffer from mini-strokes. Although Derek Shepherd and his team managed to stabilize her and her unborn child, she suffered major complications later on. While she was on the operating table, Derek decided to take out the patient’s temporal lobe to help stop the bleeding. When that didn’t work, he went a step further and tried to remove her frontal lobe.
Fortunately, they stopped the doctor from causing any more damage and allowed the deceased patient to deliver her baby in a safe way. This is a prime example of how over-confident surgeons like Derek Shepherd put their patients’ lives at risk. Instead of trying to solve the problem, he saw this woman as a puzzle that could be solved with a few extra steps. Unfortunately, his inability to step away caused the woman to suffer immensely in her final moments.
Alex Put Too Much Trust Into a Fallacious Patient
Season 2, Episode 10, “Much Too Much”
After Robert Martin fell and hit his head, he was rushed to the hospital for a subdural hemorrhage. In order to treat him effectively, Alex Karev gave the patient strict orders not to drink anything so that they could administer hypertonic saline. However, Martin locked himself in the bathroom and continued to drink water excessively.
As a result, Alex ordered too much saline, and the patient’s brain started to swell. While this isn’t exactly Karev’s fault, fans can’t help but think that he should have checked whether the patient had drunk anything. Plus, since Karev is known for being a bit of a liar, he should automatically assume that everyone else does the same.
A Prized Surgeon Bit off More Than She Could Chew
Season 10, Episode 9, “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word”
During Callie Torres’ malpractice trial in “Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word,” fans learn about Travis Reed. After a snowboarding accident, Reed asked for a specific type of hip replacement that he heard would be good for athletes. Although Callie had not completed a surgery like this before, she studied the research and agreed to carry out the procedure.
Unfortunately, Travis became unstable toward the end of his surgery, so Callie had to close him up quickly. She knowingly left a sponge inside him, which later led to a series of infections and other issues. Although an infection is far less serious than excessive bleeding, Callie should have known that a foreign object like a sponge was likely to cause an infection. Despite her mistake, Callie won her malpractice trial and managed to retain her medical license.
Burke Gets a Helping Hand
Season 3, Episode 6, “Let the Angels Commit”
In retrospect, a lot of fans now find Cristina Yang and Preston Burke’s relationship to be a tad odd. For example, when Burke develops a hand tremor in “Let the Angels Commit,” he asks Cristina to complete his surgeries for him. Not only is this incredibly unethical, but it forced Cristina to work herself down to the bone.
While many fans are quick to place the blame entirely on Dr. Burke, a lot of viewers also feel that Yang is also responsible for these issues. Eventually, Burke’s hand gets better, and he continues to climb up the ranks at the hospital. However, Cristina is downgraded back to her position and struggles to gain any recognition from her peers.
Meredith and Lexie Overstep Derek’s Orders
Season 8, Episode 17, “One Step Too Far”
lexie grey is performing a surgery with earrings on.
Although Lexie and Meredith both have strong ties to Derek, they fail to see him as their superior when it comes to work. In “One Step Too Far”, the Grey sisters operate on a young patient who has an arachnoid cyst as well as a benign brain tumor. Although Derek told them not to start without him, the women went ahead anyway, draining the cyst and removing the tumor.
Yet, when the patient woke up, she was unable to speak because the surgeons had damaged the part of her brain that processes speech. Although Derek shouted at his co-workers and tried to put them in their place, he mostly just guilt-tripped Meredith and acted as a bad husband. So, if this episode proves anything, it’s that business and pleasure should never mix.
A Surgeon’s Teaching Methods Were Too Unconventional
Season 13, Episode 13, “It Only Gets Much Worse”
Eliza Minnick was introduced as an Education Consultant designed to whip Grey Sloan’s finest back into shape. But in “It Only Gets Much Worse,” she forces Stephanie Edwards to be too independent, and she struggles to cope with her patient’s excessive bleeding. After Minnick repeatedly tells Arizona to stay out of it, Robbins quickly dives in an attempt to save the child patient.
Minnick was hired to be a strict teacher, but forcing a young surgeon like Stephanie to watch a little boy die on the operating table was just cruel. Although Edwards is technically responsible for the boy’s death, more blame should be placed on Minnick because she refused to help in a crisis situation. So, it seems that Eliza’s attempt to save face cost a small child his life.
Bailey Crossed a Major Boundary With a Young Patient
Season 10, Episode 22, “We Are Never Getting Back Together”
Although the vast majority of fans believe that Miranda Bailey could do no wrong, she definitely took things too far in “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together.” She was in the process of treating a little boy with a plethora of immune disorders and had an idea to administer the boy a deactivated strain of HIV to boost his T-cell count.
Unsurprisingly, the child’s parents were against such an experimental treatment. Still, Bailey went ahead and gave him the gene therapy, and thankfully it worked. But the fact that she went behind the parents’ backs to test out this theory is worthy of a temporary dismissal at least.
