Debbie was a nurse at Seattle Grace Hospital.
History[]
Early Life[]
During Debbie's high school prom, she wore a daffodil yellow dress. Her date came out as gay and left her for the DJ, which Debbie was fine with, except that they took the limo and left her stranded at the high school. She had to call a cab to get home. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Bailey's Internship[]
At the beginning of Miranda Bailey's internship, she met Debbie, who taught Bailey about manners, and respect, not just for patients, but for her superiors and her fellow interns as well. Debbie also warned her not to "piss off the nurses", and warned her of the consequences if she did.
While Bailey and Debbie were working together on a patient that was about to have open-heart surgery, Bailey became increasingly cranky. She ordered Debbie to get her some coffee, telling her "Go and get it done". She got Bailey her coffee, but Debbie got her revenge and Bailey didn't see the inside of the OR for an entire month. ("Overheard at the Emerald City Bar")
Richard's Birthday[]
For Richard's 50th birthday, Debbie threw a surprise party for him down at the cafeteria. She bought a chocolate cake, streamers, party hats, and even booked a DJ. ("Overheard at the Emerald City Bar")
Helping Meredith[]
Before her internship, Meredith gave herself a tour around the hospital. She began to stare at the interns, thinking that would be her soon. Debbie found her and told her that she would even drink with them every night at the Emerald City Bar. Debbie proceeded to tell Meredith a few funny intern stories, as well as everything to know about the Emerald City Bar. She told Meredith to not worry about all the stress and said to her "You'll always have the Emerald City Bar". ("Overheard at the Emerald City Bar")
Judy Dolls[]
When Mr. Hubble was admitted to the hospital for swallowing heads of Judy Dolls, Alex bought a bunch of them and began to take the heads off of them for a joke. When Debbie opened the door and saw the Judy Dolls, she began to laugh at Alex since he was struggling with getting the heads off of the dolls. She left for a few minutes and came back, sat down, and grabbed a doll, holding its legs, instructing Alex to pull as hard as he could on the head. They succeeded with the first one and did many more. ("Overheard at the Emerald City Bar")
Paella Contest[]
After Debbie brought in leftover paella, Burke asked her about how she made it. She used a slightly different recipe, which included cinnamon. After he criticized her recipe, she challenged him to a paella-making contest, which Burke accepted.
They brought in their paella dishes the next day and set up a blind taste test, which included BokHee, George O'Malley, Izzie Stevens, Miranda Bailey, and Richard Webber. Bailey and Richard choose Burke's, while BokHee and Izzie chose Debbie's. It was down to George, whom Burke thought would choose his, but George chose Debbie's dish instead, which made hers the winning dish. ("Overheard at the Emerald City Bar")
New Interns[]
When the new interns arrived at Seattle Grace, Debbie and the other nurses were betting on who would be the next "007". Debbie bet on Izzie, since she heard that she used to be a lingerie model. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Rape Victim[]
When a rape victim, Allison, was admitted to Seattle Grace, Debbie said she never seen the staff rally around a patient like they did with her. She saw the surgery where Burke pulled out the rapist's penis out of Allison's esophagus. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Izzie's Party[]
She attended the party Izzie threw for her boyfriend. At the party, she made out with her ex-boyfriend, Dr. Taylor. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Joe's Hospitalization[]
When Joe was admitted to the hospital because of his aneurysm, Debbie stayed at the hospital with him, despite her shift ending three hours before. She bought him muffins and passed around a get-well card for all the staff to sign for Joe. She was relieved to find out that his surgery went well and he was recovering. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Harassing Cristina[]
When Cristina Yang annoyed her by dismissing her rudely when she asked about Shane Herman, Debbie got revenge by paging her constantly for disgusting cases. At the end of the day, Yang went to Bailey and asked why she was paged for all those cases, but Bailey said she didn't know what she was talking about. Debbie then told Cristina that if she had've shown a bit of respect, she could've saved herself a very long day. ("Something to Talk About")
Sophie Larson[]
When Sophie Larson was hospitalized, Debbie was one of her nurses. When George inquired about why Sophie hadn't yet left the hospital, Debbie said it's because she's not a bouncer. She complained about the lack of resources and staffing in the hospital. ("Tell Me Sweet Little Lies")
Exhaustion[]
While driving home from work, she suddenly veered off the road and into a ditch. Debbie realized that she had fallen asleep at the wheel, due to her exhaustion from the nurses being understaffed. Debbie then said that from that incident she knew it was time to take a stand. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Nurses' Strike[]
When the understaffing pushed them to the breaking point, the second-shift nurses did a sick out and Debbie delivered official notice to Richard that they were going on strike in ten days. ("Tell Me Sweet Little Lies")
At 5:59, the last minute of her last shift pre-strike, she locked herself in the bathroom stall, allowed herself to hyperventilate for 60 seconds, and then went into the OR and gave Richard the final notice about the strike. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
While walking the picket line, Debbie, along with Olivia and Tyler, asked George to go in to check on their patients. ("Break on Through")
During her lunch break, Cristina pelted the nurses with half a dozen tuna sandwiches. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station") Later that evening, at Joe's bar, the nurses retaliated by pouring a drink on Cristina's lap. She then began to fight with the nurses, calling one of them a soccer mom, but Meredith diffused it and dragged Cristina out of the bar. ("Break on Through")
Bomb Threat[]
When there was a bomb in a patient's chest cavity, Debbie informed the Chief when the Bomb Squad arrived to help after a bomb threat. ("It's the End of the World") She also later provided the hospital blueprints, which showed that the bomb was directly over the hospital's main oxygen line. ("As We Know It")
Being Cornered by Callie[]
While Debbie was walking through the tunnels, she was cornered by Callie Torres, who asked her who George's friends were, where he lived, whether or not Debbie had worked with him much, how he was with patients and doctors, his pet peeves, and if he had a girlfriend. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Beglights[]
When Shawn Beglight came into the hospital with a head injury, Debbie was one of his nurses. She assisted the doctors when they had to drill a burr hole in his hospital room and then Rick, Shawn's father, threw up on her. ("What Have I Done to Deserve This?")
Relationships[]
Romantic[]
Steve Mostow[]
Debbie considered pursuing a romantic relationship with Steve after he passed out in her car the week before Halloween. On the night of Halloween, they met up at Joe's bar.
Dr. Taylor[]
She dated Dr. Taylor for a time. They bonded over doing crosswords together in the OR and he eventually used a crossword joke to ask her out on a date. Things broke off between them because she didn't like that he didn't like to do anything that didn't involve alcohol. After they split, she kept being drawn to him, even though she knew it was a bad idea. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Familial[]
On Thanksgiving Day, her uncle Pete passed away. He was a nurse and was an activist for Equal Male Nursing Opportunities. Debbie says that he was a man ahead of his time. Her aunt Lucy, who was also a nurse, made rice krispie stuffing and says that Pete ate too much of it. In addition to Pete and Lucy being nurses, Debbie's sister Val, all her cousins, and her great-grandmother, Byrd were all nurses as well. Debbie said that her cousin Betty had a good sense of humor but had low self-esteem. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Friendships[]
Her clique is Tyler, Olivia, and Liz.
Joe[]
She and Joe are best friends. They met at the bar, and Debbie recalls that he was pouring her tequila, but they knew they would be friends on the day of the first annual Emerald City Darts Tournament. When it was time to play, Joe needed a partner after his flaked on him, and Debbie volunteered to be his partner. Her dart skills brought her and Joe up to semifinals, where they lost. Joe congratulated Debbie on her dart skills and she thanked him for taking her mind off work. While munching on peanuts, they began to gossip about the people they both knew. Debbie then had the revelation that they shared a connection to almost every person at Seattle Grace; Debbie saw them at work, and Joe saw them after work. Debbie said that it was like "comparing notes". They have been best friends ever since. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Elizabeth Fallon[]
She was good friends with Elizabeth while she worked at the hospital. When she died, Debbie was in the room and she said it was a strangely serene moment. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Yvonne[]
Yvonne and Debbie hit it off while Mary was being treated. Debbie even managed to get them some jello cups, despite the cafeteria being closed. When Yvonne died due to internal bleeding, Debbie said that it hit her hard since she looked fine but was more damaged then most of the patients in the room. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Professional[]
Cristina Yang[]
After Cristina stole a patient from the psych ward and dismissed Debbie rudely after asking for paperwork on the patient, she paged her constantly for rectal exams and other disgusting cases. At the end of the day, Cristina went to Bailey, assuming that it was her, and asked why she was paged for all those cases, but Bailey said that she had no idea what she was talking about. Debbie then says to Cristina that if she had shown a little respect, she could've saved herself a very long day.
During the nurses' strike, she pelted the nurses with half a dozen tuna sandwiches. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station") At Joe's bar, the nurses retaliated by pouring a drink on Cristina's lap. She then began to get into a fight with the nurses, calling one a soccer mom, but Meredith dragged Cristina out of the bar before it could happen. ("Break on Through)
George O'Malley[]
After he refused to cross the picket line, Debbie said that she had a newfound respect for George. Debbie and a few other nurses sent George into the hospital so that they could receive reports on their patients. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Richard Webber[]
She has a good professional relationship with Richard. He says she is like family and also says that while Adele keeps him in check at home, Debbie is the one that keeps him in line at work. She informs Adele of what he is doing at the hospital and calls her if Richard is stuck in surgery and won't make it home for dinner. Debbie also reminds him about birthdays, holidays, and wedding anniversaries. For his 50th birthday, Debbie threw a surprise party at the hospital and Richard says he will never forget it. ("Overheard at the Emerald City Bar")
Career[]
When she started at Seattle Grace, she was intimidated by Ellis Grey and says she was the Cristina Yang of her class. Debbie says that Ellis is still is one of the most skilled doctors she ever worked with. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
She worked at Seattle Grace as a nurse from the time of Ellis Grey and remained until at least Meredith Grey's second year of residency. She was a large part of the nurses' strike when the hospital was understaffed. ("Break on Through")
Before working at Seattle Grace, she worked at County Hospital. ("Notes from the Nurses' Station")
Notes and Trivia[]
- She has an official blog.
- She loves to gossip.[1]
- She's a stickler for paperwork.[2]
- She likes to sing.[3]
- She cooks.[4]
- She's a Gemini.[5]
- She is a big sports fan.[6]
- She calls interns "The Virgin Surgeons".[7]
- She enjoys blogging, cheesy movies, playing darts, tormenting surgical interns, and karaoke.[8]
- She doesn't eat eggs.[9]
- She goes to Joe's bar every Thursday night.[10]
- She has hand-crafted designer darts from Scotland.[11]
- She hates lightning because it makes her think like a disaster could strike at any moment.[12]
- Her pet peeves include patients who hoard their medication, loud neighbors, anesthesiologists, and changing bed pans.[13]
- Things she loves include her cat, Skittles, Joe's bar, traveling, and her job.[14]
- Her favorite food is chocolate croissants and her least favorite is hospital pudding.[15]
- She was Seattle Grace Hospital Nurse of the Year for at least five years in a row.[16]
- She's the reigning Karaoke champion at Emerald City Bar.[17]
- She won the darts tournament at Joe's.[18]
- Ginger gave her a pair of crocheted booties and a bottle of gin.[19]
- She makes New Year's Resolutions every year and always breaks them.[20]
- She owns the Scrabble board Izzie Stevens used to play with Denny. In exchanged for its use, Izzie taught Debbie to knit.[21]
- She is said to make great paella, a rice dish.[22]
Gallery[]
Episodic[]
Episode Stills[]
Appearances[]
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 2 | |||||
| #01 | "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" | #10 | "Much too Much" | #19 | "What Have I Done to Deserve This?" |
| #02 | "Enough is Enough" | #11 | "Owner of a Lonely Heart" | #20 | "Band-Aid Covers the Bullet Hole" |
| #03 | "Make Me Lose Control" | #12 | "Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" | #21 | "Superstition" |
| #04 | "Deny, Deny, Deny" | #13 | "Begin the Begin" | #22 | "The Name of the Game" |
| #05 | "Bring the Pain" | #14 | "Tell Me Sweet Little Lies" | #23 | "Blues for Sister Someone" |
| #06 | "Into You Like a Train" | #15 | "Break on Through" | #24 | "Damage Case" |
| #07 | "Something to Talk About" | #16 | "It's the End of the World" | #25 | "17 Seconds" |
| #08 | "Let It Be" | #17 | "As We Know It" | #26 | "Deterioration of the Fight or Flight Response" |
| #09 | "Thanks for the Memories" | #18 | "Yesterday" | #27 | "Losing My Religion" |