In The Pitt Season 2 episode 12, Dana saved Emma from getting strangled by Curtis, probably punched Curtis in the face (thereby breaking his nose), and injected the assailant with some anti-anxiety medication to get him to calm down. Emma was fine, but Robby wasn’t okay with how Dana had handled that situation. That led to a pretty long verbal battle between the two of them, and Dana got the last word because she pointed out that Robby wasn’t angry with the way she had dealt with Curtis; he was angry that he wasn’t getting the attention that he was seeking by deciding to go on that sabbatical of his. He didn’t have a comeback for that, because he knew that Dana was right. Robby’s erratic attitude had had a negative effect on Langdon, and he had started to lean on Baran for support. But when Baran learned the reason behind Langdon and Santos’ beef from Robby, she sidelined Langdon, because even she believed that Langdon should be in jail instead of the PTMC. Langdon sensed the shift in the vibes, but did that quash his spirit? Not entirely. He kept toiling, and he even found the time to have a chat with McKay, who was having a hard time dealing with Roxie’s passing. Things were relatively fine when it came to Mel and Samira as they were tending to a geriatric couple, Frida and Eddie. And it seemed like both of them would be able to clock out on time, but that’s when Orlando showed up again in the ER, thereby postponing Samira’s plans of thinking about what subject she should choose as her elective. Anyway, what happened next? Let’s find out.
Spoiler Alert
Orlando Probably Tried To Die By Suicide
Hour 13, or episode 13, of Season 2 opens with the bone-chilling revelation that Orlando didn’t just pass out because of his diabetes, he has also taken a tumble from a height of 20 feet. Samira, Robby, Mateo, Victoria, Garcia, and Ellis tend to him. Since this is a teaching hospital, Ellis asks a question based on the stats, and instead of answering, Samira snaps back at her, because she evidently feels guilty for letting this happen. Orlando is taken for his CT by Ellis and Garcia; meanwhile, Samira approaches Nguyen, one of the medics who brought in Orlando, to check if Orlando’s situation has worsened because of his ailment or if it was an attempt to die by suicide. Nguyen is unable to help her with that, because she was too busy stabilizing him after the fall. When Orlando returns from the CT, it’s revealed that there’s some brain swelling going on, and lung bruising too, but no intra-abdominal hemorrhaging. Hence, Garcia takes herself off the case and sends in Linda from Neurosurgery. In the meantime, Robby tries to check if Samira is at the top of her game, and although she snaps back at him too, she proves that she still knows what she’s doing and is not letting her emotions cloud her judgment of Orlando.
That said, when Linda arrives and asks if somebody wants to assist her with managing the ICP (Increased Intracranial Pressure) and CPP (Cerebral Perfusion Pressure), Samira backs out. Victoria doesn’t want to assist either, because she’s exhausted. However, Robby doesn’t like this attitude, especially because working with Linda can be good for either of their futures. Samira has been eyeing the geriatric division, so Robby doesn’t bother her, but he essentially forces Victoria to assist Linda so that she can become as good as or better than her mother, Shamsi. Victoria has no choice but to “step up to the plate,” and, as expected, she hits a home run by reducing the pressure on Orlando’s brain. Robby meets Samira at the hub and says that they should get Orlando into a neuro-critical ICU bed, because that’s what the need of the hour is. That’s when Lorrie arrives in the ER, and Samira’s heart drops when she realizes that she has no idea what has happened in the last few hours. So, when Lorrie learns that Orlando not only ran away from the ER but also possibly tried to kill himself, she’s devastated. Noelle arrives to give Lorrie the lowdown on the bills, because that’s the Diazes’ biggest concern (or maybe the second-biggest concern now).
Jesse’s Fate Is Still Uncertain
Santos briefs Crus, part of the night shift staff, about Jesse’s arrest. Langdon asks Crus if he’s aware of the protocol they are following to deal with the blackout, and Crus says that he is good. Whitaker can be seen showing the new night shift intern, Nazely, the ropes, and he introduces her to Monica and Baran. Monica acknowledges Nazely’s presence with her traditional snark, while Baran warmly greets her in Armenian (minus the AI slop that Baran peddles; she’s truly amazing). Abbot finally returns for his shift and learns that he and Shen will be the attending physicians, while Crus will be their senior attending physician. Given how Abbot is associated with SWAT, Dana complains to him about Jesse’s arrest, and then she turns to the night shift staff and tells them about what has transpired so far.
Perlah informs Robby about Jesse’s whereabouts, and Robby says that he’ll pass on that info to the hospital lawyers and see what they can do about it. While all this is going on, the digital blackout comes to an end, which means that the dayshift staff has to upload all (yeah, all) the physical data into the digital system via the scanner and then shred the physical logs only after it has been checked for accuracy; Whitaker and Santos get their very own scanning stations. As if that’s not a headache, the day shift staff also has to introduce the night shift staff to the patients they were tending to so that the patients know who will be tending to them during the second half of the day. Going back to the Jesse problem, Abbot hypothesizes that ICE is going to keep him in the lockup over the weekend and then present him before a judge on Monday, which means that we won’t be seeing Jesse this season.
Dana and Emma Clean Up Digby
Dana and Emma focus on cleaning up Digby so that he looks great before he’s discharged. Digby says that he can give himself a clean shave, but Emma says that she’s more than okay doing it for him; I think she doesn’t want to let him hold something with a blade in it yet because he’s still pretty shaky and might just cut himself. But I like that Emma doesn’t make it that obvious and just frames her decision to shave him as a part of her job. Dana arrives to admire Emma’s work as well as Digby’s good looks, and she suggests that he get a haircut as well. Digby is hesitant, but you know how Dana is; if she has set her mind on doing something, she’ll persuade you until she gets the job done.
So, yeah, Digby gives in, and while doing so, he reveals that the last time he had gotten a haircut was before his daughter’s wedding. He also tells Emma and Dana that his daughter lives in his house, which understandably comes as a shock to them (and those who are watching the episode too), because why is Digby homeless if he has a home? Anyway, once the haircut is done, Digby starts to freak out that his family won’t be able to recognize him now. Both Dana and Emma assure Digby that if his family loves him, they’ll recognize him no matter how he looks. Emma goes a step further: if Digby danced with his daughter at her wedding, regardless of how bad things get, she’ll always remember that dance. This causes Digby to calm down and properly appreciate the work that Dana and Emma have done (if you don’t have tears in your eyes during this whole interaction, I am going to doubt if you are even human).
Green Is Dead
While sitting around their scanners, Santos wonders where Ogilvie is, because he should be doing the chart-scanning thing with them, and Whitaker says that he is on the Green case. Santos then shifts to the topic of Whitaker moving out of her house and moving into Robby’s house, which means that she is clearly not happy with Whitaker’s life choices. Whitaker defends himself by saying that it’s hard to say “no” to Robby, which prompts Santos to change the topic again to Robby’s sabbatical. I guess Santos is the only one in the whole ER who thinks that the department can’t function without Robby, and she has no faith in Baran. That’s because, much like Robby, Santos likes to hide her issues in the chaos of the ER; Baran’s need for efficiency exposes those issues, and said exposed issues start to feel like a personal attack. When Santos takes a break from gossiping and checks the status of Green so that she can get an idea of when Ogilvie will be back at the hub, she is shocked to learn that Green passed away during surgery.
Before Whitaker can process Green’s death or check on Ogilvie, Nazely drags him away to deal with a teenager who has jewelry magnets stuck in her nose (Nazely, nasal; is that the joke here?). Whitaker solves that surprisingly easily and goes back to the hub. That’s where he learns from Emma, who was on her way home, that Ogilvie is sitting in the ambulance in his bloodied scrubs. Whitaker realizes that Ogilvie’s inability to save Green has demolished his mental health, and since Whitaker has some experience in that department, he chooses to snap him back to reality. Does Whitaker’s pep talk have a positive effect on Ogilvie, though? We won’t know until next season. I have a feeling that Samira’s future at the Pitt is questionable too, because she was already overwhelmed with the Orlando case, and she’s been struggling to choose her elective, and then she learns about Green’s death and completely crumbles. I think Whitaker should have comforted her just like he comforted Ogilvie; at the same time, I understand that he is exhausted and wants Samira to deal with her anxieties by herself.
Santos Dunks On Turmeric Fans
McKay and Nazely tend to Mrs. Davis, who has become completely yellow, thereby suggesting that she has some kind of a liver issue. But based on Davis’ lifestyle, it seems like she loves to live healthily and doesn’t do anything that can affect her liver in any way. Given how Santos has a habit of accurately diagnosing oddball cases, McKay ropes her in, even though Santos just wants to finish scanning the charts, go home, and then sleep. Speaking of sleep, Santos gets Davis to talk about “sleepmaxxing,” which in turn gets Davis to reveal that she consumes an ungodly amount of turmeric. Based on that, Santos says that consuming high doses of turmeric can cause liver failure, and that shocks the hell out of Davis. I think this will come as a shock to many other people who avoid taking proper meds and think turmeric can solve anything. I am not naming the country whose people are strong believers of turmeric being the cure to every disease under the sun.
In real life, there’s a social media personality who goes by the name The Liver Doc, and he has tried to highlight this issue that’s plaguing millions of families, and he has only faced backlash upon backlash. So, I don’t know how people will react to this subplot; I have a feeling that many will start calling The Pitt an unrealistic show that’s doing propaganda against turmeric fans. I can’t bring myself to be optimistic and say that sense will prevail and people will only put turmeric in their food instead of eating it raw or in the form of capsules. McKay gives Davis’ results to Nazely, where it says that her liver has been damaged, but it’s not dead yet. She has to get off those turmeric capsules and stay in the hospital for monitoring purposes. While talking about how Santos managed to catch the turmeric overdose, she brings up the fact that the CDC in Pittsburgh has become a medical toxic waste site. Is that really true, or just a prediction of what’s going to happen in real life in the near future? Anyway, Santos’ spirits are lifted a little bit when Mel and Whitaker arrive at the scanning station and maximize their joint slay (read: dorky behavior) while shredding some documents.
Langdon Almost Kills Grady
A young kid, Grady Barnhill, is wheeled into the ER with a severe breathing problem. His mother, Naomi, says that he has a history of asthma, but the meds had kept things under control all this while. But due to Medicaid cuts, there have been some inconsistencies, which seems to be one of the biggest reasons behind this recent complication. Shen, Crus, Mel, and Langdon take care of this case. Mel jabs him with an EpiPen, but when that doesn’t work, Langdon thinks that they should intubate him. Shen stops him from doing so because intubating someone can lead to cardiac arrest, and suggests that they continue treating him the way they are currently for a little while longer. Baran arrives in the room and immediately suggests putting him on a nebulizer that’s a little more advanced than the one he’s using currently. Now, something odd happens when Baran puts the stethoscope to Grady’s chest and listens to it; she blanks out, just like she did when she was observing Baby Jane Doe, and then rushes out of the room. Everyone, including Robby, observes this. While nobody else really minds it all that much, Robby asks Samira if she has any idea if Baran has some issues that she isn’t sharing with everyone, because Samira had worked with Baran at the VA, but Samira is unable to come up with anything informative.
Going back to Grady, his breathing starts to normalize, which allows the doctors and Naomi to provide some more commentary on how horribly the Medicaid cuts are affecting the country (those who voted for The Orange can engage in some self-reflection here). However, a few moments later, his situation worsens and Langdon again suggests that they should intubate him. Crus points out that there’s no lung sliding on the right, which brings Mel to the conclusion that it’s a case of pneumothorax or a collapsed lung. So, Crus makes an incision on the right side of his chest and thrusts his finger into it, thereby helping Grady breathe again. This pushes Langdon into a bit of an existential crisis, and he starts wondering if he’s really fit to return to the PTMC. However, Mel comes to the rescue and assures him that it’s not such a big deal, and that he would have eventually caught it instead of pushing Grady to his death (the Friedrich Nietzsche-Kelly Clarkson mixup during this exchange is adorably hilarious). That improves Langdon’s mood, and he returns to the room along with Mel and Crus, and they listen to Naomi’s complaints about the Medicaid cuts and assure her that the PTMC will do its best to help out Grady until he gets his Medicaid status back. Grady thanks Langdon and the rest of them, and I think that restores Langdon’s faith in himself.
Robby Is Suicidal
Robby learns that although Duke has been taken up for his CT, he hasn’t been scanned yet; he’s just waiting with Vivi in the hallway. Robby intends to stay in the ER until he’s sure that Duke gets some direction regarding what he needs to do in order to return from the brink, but Dana says that he should clock out and let the rest of them handle it. Since Dana is working overtime, Robby retorts that she doesn’t have a right to comment on his choice to do overtime duty as well. Robby comes across Baran and tries to confront her directly regarding her lapses of attention, but Baran seems to be as dismissive about her issues as Robby is about his. So, Robby goes back to check in on the progress that Duke has made and is relieved to learn that he is finally in the CT scanning room. A few minutes later, Robby meets Duke at the hub and learns that not only has his scan gone well, but he has also struck up a friendship with Nurse Vivi, because she wants to get biking lessons from him. That warms Robby’s heart, but the longer he has to wait for Duke’s results, the more anxious he gets. Monica says that she’s going to run over to radiology and get the charts. In the meantime, Robby, Perlah, and Mateo start talking about Orlando, his chances of making it through this ordeal, and the reason (the suicide attempt) that has brought him back to the ER pretty loudly. Dana notices that Lorrie is about to overhear them, and she has to shout at them to get their attention and shut them up. Instead of owning up to the mistake that he was about to make, Robby just walks away from the hub so that he doesn’t have to listen to what Dana has to say.
Duke’s results finally come in, and they do not look very good, and Robby is of the opinion that Duke should get the bad news from him. Before heading to Duke’s room, though, Robby gets into a romantic mood as he meets Noelle at the hub. He forgets all about his professionalism and starts hugging her too. God knows what else he would have started doing if Abbot didn’t interrupt. Anyway, in the ending of episode 13, Robby gets in touch with an expert from Cardiology so that they can take care of Duke as soon as possible. However, when he learns that surgeries won’t happen over the holiday weekend, and Duke has to take his chances at home (at least until the holiday ends), he loses his temper. That in turn causes Dana to lose her temper, and she drags Robby into the locker room and tells him to leave for his sabbatical. Robby finally admits that the reason behind all his pent-up anger isn’t really because he’s worried about how the ER will function without him; he is worried that he won’t return from his sabbatical to see the ER functioning properly without him. Yeah, there have been a lot of signs that point to the fact that Robby is suicidal, but this time, it really looks like he’s on his way to kill himself. There are 2 more hours left in this shift, and if he isn’t dissuaded from crashing his bike and dying, well, Season 3 of the show will only feature his ghost or flashbacks.
