Grey's Anatomy 'By Shonda Rhimes' Break On Through

In an episode of the hit television show Grey’s Anatomy produced by Shonda Rhimes, an episode with the presence of labor unions is used to demonstrate the unfair working condition of nurses in the fictional hospital. Directed by David Paymer, the fourteenth episode of Grey’s Anatomy’s, “Break on Through”, gives insight on the treatment of nurses at Seattle Grace Hospital. These nurses were not only overwhelmed by the unfair hours and wages they received daily, but also the ways they were treated by their superiors. One scene depicted a doctor yelling at a nurse in anger because his patient had not yet been given her medication. The nurse, clearly stressed, responded, “We are understaffed and overworked. Why don’t you give her the meds” (2:27 - …show more content…
Many other interactions between nurses and doctors indicated the tensions beginning to rise in the workplace. Furthermore, the chief of surgery’s assistant and former nurse, Patricia portrayed by Robin Pearson Rose, complained to doctors of the hospital that the reason she quit being a nurse was because “doctors don’t know how to pitch in” (3:00 - 3:30). She exhibited her frustration with the doctors after hearing them complain about their workload. As a former nurse, Patricia spoke on behalf of the current hospital’s nurses and told the chief of surgery, Dr. Richard Weber portrayed by James Pickens Jr., that the nurses of Seattle Grace Hospital would be going on strike the next day. The next scene showed all the hospital’s nurses outside the entrance forming a strike. They were all screaming and chanting, “fair hours, fair wages!” in the hopes that doctors, hospital administrators, and the public would listen to their complaints and