'The Good Doctor' Season 3 Episode 6: Dr. Neil Melendez deals with an emotional dilemma; will he stay or quit from the practice?
Dr. Neil Melendez is the kind of man any medical institution would be proud to have. He has been supervising surgical residents at the San Jose St. Bonaventure Hospital and trained them to be excellent at their jobs.
Yes, he can be a critic at times, to the extent that it disturbs his mentees, but he only means well. He has had his share of disagreements with his colleagues and management, but his skills and experience outweigh his flaws.
Dr. Melendez always strives for perfection. Being the critic that he is, it is quite difficult for him to accept Shaun Murphy as a doctor. Although he was not ready to hand him major responsibilities, he always acknowledged the prodigy and never let the symptoms of autism cloud his judgment.
In simpler words, Dr. Melendez is a good doctor and a good man, albeit with a rough side, which is acceptable.
Across various situations, we saw him succeed at times, and fail many times, whether it was at a point he tries to make or a decision about a patient that he takes. But never before has he been in a situation as we saw him in episode six.
When he became the chief consulting surgeon to a 23-weeks pregnant woman with intestinal cancer, he had to make the tough call of saving either the mother or the baby. He knew it was a risky affair to save both, but as a doctor, it is his primary responsibility to do his best.
He even discussed his decision with his boss and partner, Dr. Audrey Lim, who was equally professional in her approach and never let her emotions come in the way of guiding Dr. Melendez.
But as luck would have it, Dr. Melendez failed his surgery and failed to save the mother — something he was striving for. While operating, one of the arteries of the patient gets nicked and she bleeds profusely.
Perhaps he blames himself for the patient’s death. We see him undergoing emotional turmoil combined with professional disappointment.
If we have understood him well across the three seasons, we feel he might quit. Although one failure is no reason for a doctor to quit his lifetime’s work, sometimes, some cases take such a heavy toll on emotions that it seems only fair to take a few steps back and start all over again.
At the end of episode six, when we see Dr. Melendez and Dr. Lim sitting in silence, we cannot help but wonder if this incident will make him quit from the hospital or perhaps take a sabbatical from the medical practice.
