Could Sharon Goodwin’s time at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center be coming to an end? It’s a fear that is certainly at the front of our minds following the events of Chicago Med season 11, episode 12, “Spill Your Guts.”
Early in the episode, Goodwin boards a private plane heading for Wyoming to meet with a high-profile hospital stockholder. Goodwin anticipated that the main point of discussion would be more budget cuts for the hospital, so she attempted to strategize with board member Miranda Lewis on a plan to present a united front to try to prevent taking a big hit. What Goodwin did not expect was to discover that her job at Gaffney was in jeopardy and that Miranda was the one leading that charge.
We were prepared to see Goodwin potentially go to battle to save her job in the episode, but instead we witnessed Goodwin fighting to save Miranda’s life.
Goodwin was quick to notice that Miranda was acting strangely. It turned out that Miranda had been in a minor car accident and wasn’t wearing her seat belt, which caused her to be thrown into the back of the driver’s seat pretty hard. She’d been having pain in her ribs since and Goodwin quickly realized that she seemed to be suffering from internal injuries.
It turned out that Miranda was bleeding from a chest injury and needed immediate attention. With an assist from Dr. Howard back at Med, Goodwin was able to use her medical knowledge to save Miranda’s life. The episode ended with Goodwin and Naomi sharing a sweet moment together back at Med as Naomi shared the story of her first surgery and congratulated her on the successful procedure.
What the episode did not resolve was the fact that Goodwin’s job remains very much on the line.
Yes, Goodwin managed to save Miranda’s life, but there is no guarantee that Goodwin’s job at Gaffney is secure. One would assume that after she managed to save Miranda and show her calmness under pressure, the board wouldn’t exactly look to replace or terminate her employment. However, the fact that they were entertaining the idea of letting Goodwin go is quite concerning.
Goodwin has seen the hospital through many ups and downs and has proven herself to be a fair and level-headed leader in her position. You would think that after all she has done for the hospital and the many times she’s proven herself to the board, her job wouldn’t be on the line or an item they’d be willing to eliminate. Hopefully, Miranda will see the error in her ways and turn from an adversary to an ally in helping Goodwin to keep her job.
However, we’re certainly worried about what the future will hold. After all, if the board was willing to consider firing Goodwin, one would imagine she could be under the microscope, and any wrong move could be used as an excuse to revisit the conversation.