When you initially start looking for shows like Chicago Med to watch, a lot of people recommend the other One Chicago shows. Maybe they recommend the Law & Order trio. But you want something different.
It’s time to step outside of the Dick Wolf world. There are some excellent dramas out there that will make you feel like you’re watching Chicago Med.
It doesn’t matter if you want the medical storylines, the patient drama, or the relationships between coworkers. Here are the five shows you need to check out right now.
Grey’s Anatomy
There arguably wouldn’t be Chicago Med without Grey’s Anatomy coming first. This medical drama remains popular with the fans, and it brings an excellent mixture of types of drama. The earlier seasons are the best, but I think that can be said for any show.
This series started with five interns coming into Seattle Grace Hospital (now known as Grey Sloan Memorial) to become great doctors. Over the course of the seasons, they have treated and lost patients, broken rules, almost lost their medical licenses, got married, had babies, got divorced, been in plane crashes, drowned, and so much more!
There are a lot of steamy elevator scenes, and a lot of heartbreaking patient storylines. The little girl whose dad was trying to get her to Mexico will always break my heart.
ER
Before there was Grey’s Anatomy, there was ER. Again, this genre would not be what it is today without this series. And it’s not just because of George Clooney! The entire series is a masterpiece in terms of medical and relationship drama.
ER is even set in Chicago! It follows a group of doctors in the emergency room, as they deal with all sorts of crises. Some days are mundane, while others are packed with crazy calls and interesting dilemmas. And yes, there are some heartbreaking decisions that the doctors need to make for the sake of patients. In the world of medical dramas, not everyone can survive.
This is one of those shows that never gets old. There are 15 seasons to work your way through.
The Resident
FOX brought us an excellent medical drama, which has had some similar storylines to the Chicago Med ones over the years. We had the start of a pandemic storyline before the pandemic officially got underway, there are discussions about the problems with insurance companies and the medical system, and there is even the storyline of turning the hospital into public owned!
The Resident starts with a new doctor coming into Chastain Hospital. Devon quickly learns that the hospital environment isn’t the friendliest place to be, and that what you learn in med school should sometimes be ignored. He follows the great work of Conrad Hawkins, who is one of the best diagnosticians in the hospital, figuring out what’s wrong with a patient without even having all the answers.
There are intriguing medical problems, issues with shady medical staff, and there’s always someone trying to get Conrad, Nic, or one of the other great characters fired. This is not a series to skip over.
House
Another medical drama of the past that you need to watch is House. Hugh Laurie took on the role of a man who is gruff and to the point but excellent at his job. He doesn’t like talking to patients because patients lie—and most of the time, they prove that to him!
Dr. House takes on the rarest and strangest of conditions. He has a team of doctors who learn under him, and they all get to work on figuring out what’s really going on with the patients. In some cases, it takes going to the patients’ houses to find out what they’ve eaten.
House includes a member of the One Chicago family. Chase Spencer started out in this series, and you get to hear his natural accent. It’s beautiful!
Transplant
Sometimes, you need a medical drama that is set in another country. It’s always interesting to see how different medical systems and hospital systems run. Transplant gives us a look at the Canadian system.
It follows Dr. Bashir “Bash” Hamed, a Syrian refugee who finds himself working at a fast food joint despite being a doctor. Due to the state of Syria, he can’t prove that he’s a doctor, and nobody will take him on. That is until there’s an explosion at his place of work and the Chief of Surgery happens to be in the place and needs immediate medical help. Bash isn’t going to let the man die, and not just because he wants to work at the hospital.
This opens the door for Bash to start working as a doctor again. There are a few questions about his medical license—again, due to the state of the country and the regime in charge there—and Bash has to learn the way of the Canadian medical system. He is taken out of treating patients in war zones and forced to work within the regulatory lines.
Yes, there are personal storylines woven in. There are also some intriguing patients, whether it’s when religion and medicine don’t mix or some difficult choices that various patients and their families need to make.