7 Things in ‘The Pitt’ That Make No Sense

The Pitt has taken viewers on an intense, at times jarring journey through what it’s like to work in the ER (or Pitt, as the characters call it). Each of the 15 episodes covers a single hour of a shift being worked by Dr. Robby (Noah Wyle) while focusing on difficult patients, perplexing cases, and interpersonal struggles. There’s much to commend about the series, including its attention to detail and realism—but this very realism has made The Pitt’s few nonsensical moments stand out even more.

The Pitt

Release Date

January 9, 2025

Network

Max

Showrunner

R. Scott Gemmill

Directors

Amanda Marsalis

Writers

Joe Sachs, Cynthia Adarkwa

• Noah Wyle

  Dr. Michael ‘Robby’ Robinavitch

• Tracy Ifeachor

  Uncredited

Again, The Pitt is an amazing show, and the parts that don’t make sense don’t take away from how entertaining it is. But they do make us wonder about the greater world of the series, the characters’ more general well-being, and the implications The Pitt has regarding real-life emergency rooms.

7

Zero Response to Biohazards

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Student Doctor Whitaker (Gerran Howell) started The Pitt as a fourth-year medical student, and his first day in the Pitt was a trial by fire. Across multiple episodes, he was covered in pee, blood, and various other fluids, which led to a running gag in which he constantly switched out his scrubs. At the same time, the sheer amount of biohazards he was exposed to left viewers gagging and worried about his health. Yet, none of the doctors seemed concerned—even though they probably should have been.

Funny but Frightening

While these moments were played for laughs, in truth, Whitaker could have caught a host of diseases. He and the patients should have probably had blood work done to rule out anything being spread. During a scene in which Dr. Garcia (Alexandra Metz) was injured, it was mentioned that such blood work was standard, so it’s possible it occurred off-screen. However, given how much we see of Whitaker’s day, it seems like an oversight not to have shown what that process looked like, especially because he went on to treat a slew of other patients, all of whom he could have potentially exposed to something as well.

6

Acceptance of Suicidality

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The Pitt began with Dr. Robby heading to the roof and seeing his fellow Attending, Dr. Jack Abbott (Shawn Hatosy), staring down at the city. In a bookend moment, the series concluded with Dr. Robby in that same position and Dr. Abbott needing to quite literally talk him down from the edge. Afterwards, they got drinks together with some of the other doctors, and everything was apparently fine. But this ending doesn’t address the likelihood that they’re both still suicidal, and in Dr. Robby’s case, not doing much about it.

Helping Everyone but the Doctors

Like with Dr. Whitaker, the scenes involving Dr. Abbott and Dr. Robby made us worry about the welfare of the Pitt’s staff. The characters were so focused on helping others that they didn’t have much time to focus on their own needs and well-being. This also made us wonder whether the doctors would be required to report such behaviors, not just out of a sense of concern, but also because they’re mandatory reporters. While this answer isn’t straightforward, these scenes certainly highlighted that there’s a mental health issue among most of the staff, one where the treatment has been grossly negligent.

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5

Non-Mandatory Mandatory Reporting

Max, 2025

During episodes 6 and 7, Dr. Santos (Isa Briones) helped treat a man named Silas, who had been drugged with progesterone. The man’s wife suspected he was molesting their daughter, so she gave him the drug to try and dull his sex drive. Santos was horrified by this information, and she was even more horrified after learning there was nothing she could legally do to stop him. Eventually, she took matters into her own hands and threatened Silas, but in reality, there should have been another answer.

Moral and Legal Obligation

Dr. Santos may be a controversial character, but in this scene, she was the only one making any sense. If the doctors suspected Silas was hurting his daughter, they had every right and obligation to report him. Certainly, the question of whether to report can be difficult, as seen in the situation regarding a different patient, Theresa, who believed her son David might hurt a group of girls. In that specific case, Dr. McKay (Fiona Dourif) did wind up reporting him, and in this situation with Silas, the decision seemed far less complicated.

4

Patient Wishes Overruled

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Several heart-breaking moments took place during The Pitt, and one of the earliest and gut-punching scenes involved a teenager named Nick Bradley. After performing several tests, Dr. Robby declared him brain-dead, but his parents were in denial. Unfortunately, when asked to donate Nick’s organs, his mother, Lily (Samantha Sloyan), refused, even though Nick was already a legal adult and had registered via his license as a tissue and organ donor. Eventually, Dr. Robby was able to convince Nick’s parents to go ahead with their son’s wishes, but the situation made us wonder what would have happened if they hadn’t said yes.

Other Difficult Issues of Consent

Another tricky situation involving consent revolved around the character of Mr. Spencer, an elderly man with Alzheimer’s and a DNR. His children were able to override the DNR, but in this case, that at least made sense from a legal perspective, as they had power of attorney. This doesn’t seem to be the case when it came to Nick, which makes us wonder why Dr. Robby went to such lengths to convince them. It’s likely that he was trying to make the situation as nontraumatic as possible for the couple, both because he has a good heart and because he wouldn’t want to be sued. However, the hospital’s resources were already stretched thin, Nick’s wishes were clear, and his donation went on to save eight people, so we think there must have been a more effective, still delicate approach to this admittedly sensitive issue.

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3

Strange Prioritization and Escalation

Max, 2025

The Pitt did an exceptional job of showing real-life injuries, operations, and patient-doctor interactions. At the same time, medical professionals are in disagreement over a few aspects of the show, such as when and how the characters performed chest compressions, with some applauding the show’s depiction and others saying they got it wrong. More importantly, several scenes involved procedures that weren’t done quite correctly or doctors responding in a manner that seemed over-the-top, or on the opposite end, too tame. While these moments were few and far between, they’re still worth pointing out, as they detracted from what was otherwise an incredibly true-to-life portrayal.

An Emergency Beyond the ER

One of the most obvious scenes in which a medical situation should have been handled differently involved a surrogate mother giving birth. The baby suffered a shoulder dystocia, which is a medical emergency. Although an obstetrician did show up, Dr. Robby was ultimately the one who performed the delivery. In real life, it’s unlikely that he’d be the one to handle a situation like this, and even if he did, it’s almost certain that the obstetrician would have stayed to ensure nothing else went wrong (which, unfortunately, is exactly what happened).

2

Real-World Nonsense

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As previously mentioned, The Pitt does a great job at accurately portraying an ER. However, for those unfamiliar with ERs, this might make the show feel unrealistic because of how intense and chaotic the episodes get. For example, the lack of security, influx of patients, and difficult, split-second decisions the characters need to make might seem unbelievable. In truth, this is the way a real ER operates—which is perhaps nonsensical in its own right.

A Failure in Real Life, a Strength of the Show

The lack of resources, poor treatment of staff, and generally hazardous conditions of The Pitt accurately portray the lack of resources, poor treatment of staff, and generally hazardous conditions faced by real-life doctors. In that sense, it totally makes sense that the Pitt functions the way it does. But on a greater level, this forces viewers to confront the reality that hospitals are severely understaffed, underfunded, and just generally not supported. In other words, it makes sense that the Pitt functions so poorly, but it doesn’t make sense that we’ve allowed real-world hospitals to reach this point.

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With an extensive cast, viewers will certainly recognize the show’s actors and actresses from numerous other television shows and films.

1

How (and Why) Will Everyone Return?

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Shortly after season 1 ended, fans were thrilled to learn that a second season of The Pitt was underway. They were even more excited after hearing that the entire cast would be returning, but that excitement soon turned into an important question: why? At this point, there’s little reason to think that Dana, Whitaker, or Javadi would want to come back, the former two having faced exceptionally difficult shifts and the latter likely needing to go elsewhere for the rest of her studies. In other cases, characters like Dr. Santos will likely be on the outs with other doctors due to her (admittedly fair) treatment toward Langdon, which makes us wonder why she wouldn’t simply transfer to a different hospital or even quit ERs altogether.

Looking Forward to the Answer

Already, we know that The Pitt season 2 will take place after Dr. Langdon (Patrick Ball) receives treatment for his drug abuse. So, that’s one returning character down, several dozen to go. Of course, it also makes sense that main character Dr. Robby will return, as will some of the more seasoned staff, such as Dr. Abbott, even if their mental health is not in the best place to be working there. Additionally, it’s possible that some of the characters will simply come back because, in spite of the hospital struggles, they’re good people, and good doctors, and this is where they belong.

Whatever the case, we’re excited to watch this exceptional cast once again and looking forward to seeing what new characters and story lines The Pitt has in store for season 2.

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