When it was announced that Marlyne Barrett was taking a step back from Chicago Med ahead of season 11, fans were immediately curious to see how the show would handle her character’s absence. Maggie was not a character who was involved in a season-ending cliffhanger that would have made for a natural exit storyline for the character. In fact, it was quite the opposite.
Season 10 saw Maggie and her fellow nurses fighting for better benefits, leading to a nurses’ strike that created conflict between Maggie and her longtime friend, Sharon Goodwin. After a few episodes of conflict, the nurses reached a new deal with the hospital board and returned to work, thus cementing Maggie’s place back in the ED. After teasing a possible exit, only to resolve the issue and make it known Maggie wasn’t going anywhere, the writers then had to craft a story that would write the character out to accommodate Barrett’s need to step back from the show.
In the season 11 premiere, it was established that Maggie had left Gaffney. However, the details surrounding her exit were not provided. All that we learned was that she had left Gaffney, and her exit was unexpected per a conversation between Goodwin and Dr. Charles.
Since that conversation, we haven’t gotten any new information or updates on Maggie which has been a real shame, especially when you consider the tenth episode had a perfect opportunity to provide fans with an update on Maggie.
Chicago Med could have used the Tamika storyline to give us an update on Maggie
In Chicago Med season 11, episode 10, “Frost on Fire,” we saw the return of Tamika, who fans will recall was Bert’s caregiver at the assisted living facility, when one of her other patients was brought to Gaffney after a fall. While waiting with the patient in the ED, Goodwin dropped in and we learned that Tamika had an interview for a spot in a program at Gaffney.
Despite facing pressure from a member of the Gaffney board to fill that position with her nephew, Goodwin took notice of how Tamika went above and beyond for her patients and her passion for the job. With a recommendation from Goodwin, Tamika landed the nursing position at Gaffney, hinting that we’ll be seeing more of her in the episodes to come.
This was an unexpected and amazing storyline, as Tamika is a wonderful new character and we’re excited to see more of her character. But in watching this storyline unfold, we couldn’t help but think that the storyline could have been used to give fans a quick update on Maggie that wouldn’t have felt forced.
Tamika reminds us a lot of Maggie in that both women are fierce advocates for their patients and have an unwavering passion for the work they do. This is something that Goodwin surely would have observed as well. It would have been natural for Goodwin to mention how the way Tamika fought for her patient to ensure she got the best possible treatment reminded her of Maggie, before giving us an update on why she left Med or what she has been up to since.
A simple line would have done the trick. Something like, “You remind me of the Charge Nurse who used to run our ED, before leaving to [enter storyline update of any kind.] You’d have really liked her.” They wouldn’t have even needed to drop Maggie’s name directly, as the context alone could have easily led viewers to put two and two together.
It’s a moment that wouldn’t have felt forced and could have given us some much-needed context as to why Maggie left Gaffney so suddenly. It’s a shame the opportunity wasn’t taken as fans are desperately seeking answers about her exit and this was the perfect chance to give them one.