If you’ve been watching The Pitt and thinking it feels a little too real, turns out you’re not wrong. Another real life doctor is now opening up on how real the show and how accurately it depicts healthcare people.
Dr. David Shapiro, a practising surgeon, sat down with Screen Rant ahead of The Pitt season 2 and ranked TV doctors with zero diplomacy. He called ER “major cringe,” despite acknowledging it did some things well. MASH, Ben Casey, Trapper John, all guilty of glamorising the kind of irreverent, God-complex surgeon that, Shapiro insists, simply doesn’t reflect modern medicine anymore.
Shapiro in particular praised Katherine LaNasa’s Dana, who, according to him is the “best representation” of a “seasoned ER nurse.” LaNasa even won an Emmy for her role, procing that critics feel the same.
Talking about the character, Shapiro said,
“The fact that Dana, by the way — and of all the characters in the show, I’m sure Dana is a favorite for everyone — is quintessentially the best representation of an experienced and seasoned ER nurse I have ever seen in any type of media. She is it, and I know about 15 Dana’s out there in my experience who do the same thing that she does, and have been hit by patients and have experienced that.”
Everyone agrees The Pitt is an accurate portrayal of healthcare workers
It’s rare for a TV show to impress both the people who review it and the people who actually live it and The Pitt has managed to do both, and then some.
The HBO Max medical drama has been almost universally praised since its first season, scoring a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 77 on Metacritic. Season 2 pushed that even further, landing at 99% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 92 on Metacritic.
But the more interesting applause has come from the medical community itself. Healthcare workers across the US have praised the show for capturing the emotional and systemic weight that comes with working in healthcare. Nursing shortages, underfunded hospitals, violence against staff, health misinformation and the psychological toll of it all, The Pitt doesn’t look away from any of it.
Doctors have highlighted specific details that rang true, from the way attending physicians juggle teaching residents while treating patients, to the portrayal of nurses as skilled professionals rather than background characters. Several healthcare workers have even watched the show with their families as a way of showing them what their days actually look like.
It continues to be a favorite among fans, and has already been renewed for a third season.
The Pitt is available to stream on HBO Max.
Edited by Nibir Konwar