| “ | You might be surprised, but anatomy classes can be uncomfortable for surgeons. We're trained to put bodies back together. We prefer our tissue warm, alive. Usually when a surgeon is staring at dead tissue, it means that something is very, very wrong. There are some things in life that simply can't be avoided, no matter how uncomfortable they make us and there can be rewards in stepping outside of your comfort zone. Even when the thought of it makes us want to puke. Even when we want nothing more than to run screaming for the hills. That's why people love to say that what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. But sometimes, those people don't know what the hell they're talking about. | ” |
Old Time Rock and Roll is the fourth episode of the twelfth season and the 249th overall episode of Grey's Anatomy.
Short Summary
Owen suggests the interns learn a vital lesson on how to break bad news to patients' families, and Arizona's 90 year old patient reassures her that she's destined to find love again. Meanwhile, the sisters completely forget about the dinner party they're hosting for everyone.
Full Summary
Richard is teaching the anatomy class because he wanted to teach the interns about the brain. He's holding a brain and shows it to his students. He slices it up and tells the interns that if left to decompose, the brain actually liquifies. Mitchell is horrified and runs out to as he covers his mouth.
Maggie wakes up naked and realizes the mistake she's made. Andrew is getting dressed and confirms they had sex. He doesn't mean to rush out, but he's got work. Maggie says he has to get out, but she stops him as there might be people out there, maybe even kids. He's shocked to hear she has kids, but she clarifies she's talking about her sister's children. He says he doesn't hear anyone and gets out of the room. Amelia is on her way to the bathroom and looks at him as she greets him. An embarrassed Maggie lets herself fall back onto the bed.
Alex is waiting outside Meredith's house to carpool. The doctors get in the car. Amelia asks Maggie if she at least used a condom, because there's a jumbo box of condoms under the sink that she's sharing with everyone. Maggie wants her to shut up. Meredith thought Amelia was making the noise last night, and says Maggie's got a filthy mouth. Amelia concludes the intern was good in bed. Meredith wonders what intern. Maggie wants them to shut up as Alex is there, but he says he doesn't care. Amelia asks if he at least went down to ladytown, but Maggie says she'll jump out of the car if they don't shut up. Alex asks Meredith what time he should be there tonight. The sisters wonder why. He reminds them they're having a dinner party tonight, but they all completely forgot.
At the hospital, Jo tells Alex she won't be going to the dinner thing. His friends are her bosses and they treat her like a resident, not a person. Alex says that is because they only see her at the hospital as she never comes to their parties. He says she should come so they can get to know her. Jo joins Stephanie as he walks off. Stephanie says she should go as she's getting an invite to the inner circle. She'd get to know all the department heads and all the surgeries will be hers. Stephanie would kill for an invite. Amelia walks by with interns and summons Edwards, who runs after her.
April is talking to Arizona about Jackson talking about divorce. She guesses Jackson will be there tonight, so she really wants Arizona to come. Arizona is not sure as Callie's girlfriend might be there as well and she doesn't want to make her feel uncomfortable. However, she's not sure the girlfriend will be coming. April spots Callie and says she can go ask. Arizona says she'll ask about Jackson if April asks about Penny. Callie comes over and wonders if she should bring food tonight as she's doubting the sisters' cooking skills. Arizona guesses it's gonna be fine and asks if Jackson's coming. Callie doesn't know. April asks about Penny. Callie hasn't invited her as she didn't know Arizona would be okay with that. Arizona overenthusiastically tells Callie to bring Penny as they all would like to meet her. April supports this. Callie will see if Penny's available. She walks off. Arizona says she can be cool, but April points out cool people don't say they're cool.
An intern presents Amelia's patient, post op day one following decompressive craniotomy. Amelia says Rachel is the perfect candidate for early ambulation. Stephanie says she just had surgery yesterday, but Amelia says recent studies show that neuro patients recover faster if they're on their feet as soon as possible after surgery. Stephanie says it's against protocol, but Amelia gets to make protocol as department head. She tells Stephanie to call Rachel's mother and suggest she not come in today, as it's gonna be rough. Ben appears in the doorway and says Hunt has requested all available interns.
Owen is ordering nurses around to prep the ER for an incoming silver flood. Meredith and Bailey are preparing themselves as well and order supplies. Mitchell wonders what a silver flood is.
Callie is ordering Isaac to get lots of ortho supplies as a silver flood is a fracture fest. Jackson overhears them and says he hasn't seen a silver flood since Mercy West. Isaac wonders what it is.
Ben is instructing interns on how to handle patients during a silver flood and what to pay attention to and what to certainly not do. Andrew asks him what a silver flood is. They enter the ER, which is filled with elderly patients. A man is talking about the shuttle bus that was supposed to take them to the port for a cruise crashing. The driver was fiddling with his phone the entire time. Another lady says the driver wasn't texting. The way he was staring at that thing, she suspects it had to have been porno. Bailey rushes her patient to the OR as Andrew finally gets what silver flood means. He wonders why they need a code word for a bunch of old people. Two ladies call him out for being rude and say they're just senior citizens. Ben says that's why and wishes him luck.
Jackson's patient is listing all the meds he takes. Isaac puts them in the chart. Jackson asks Eddie if he's not forgetting something, like maybe a pill for erectile dysfunction. Eddie asks if he looks like the kind of guy with erectile dysfunction. Jackson says he just wants to make sure as it could give a bad reaction with other meds they might give him. Eddie asks if they need proof and tries to show them he can get an erection, but Jackson asks him not to do that.
In the hallway, Meredith tells Mrs. Margraff that they'll be taking her to CT. Gabby says she's not a mrs. as she and Abraham are just shacking up. She tells Abraham she's fine and then asks the doctors to check out his left hip as he took a spill and has never been the same since. It hasn't slowed him down, though, she giggles. He wants them to worry about Gabby, he's just banged up. Meredith tells Jo to ask the nurses to monitor him. She tells Abe they'll be taking Gabby to CT. As she's wheeled off, Gabby tells him to take a nap.
Amelia, Stephanie, and intern Hannah are trying to get Rachel to the edge of her bed. Amelia knows it hurts, but she's gotta keep her eyes open. Rachel is groaning in pain, but Amelia won't stop until she's at the edge of the bed or at her point of intolerance. Hannah asks how they'll know if they've hit that point, right when Rachel throws up. Stephanie thinks it's pretty clear. Amelia tells Rachel they can stop now and that she did great. Stephanie says she'll clean up and she goes to grab a towel, she takes a moment to gather herself.
Amelia tells Stephanie she has to take the lead on Rachel's next session. Amelia's swamped and if they miss one session, they have to stop the treatment. Stephanie wonders if that would be bad. She confesses she's not comfortable with this course of treatment as they're pushing Rachel too hard. Amelia knows it looks traumatic, and it is, but so is surgery. But in most cases, it's the patient's best chance to heal and be normal again. This is Rachel's chance. While she vomits, Stephanie comments. Amelia ignores this and tells Stephanie to come find her when she's done.
Arizona walks past Abraham, who asks if she can give him an update on Gabby as she's not back yet. Arizona checks on her tablet and tells him she's still in CT. He says that's good and she asks if there's anything else she can do for him. He honestly says he'd like some jell-o.
Maggie and Meredith are watching Gabby's scans. She has a diaphragmatic hernia and a splenic hematoma. The intercom is on and Gabby asks them if they can operate without leaving a scar. Meredith says they'll do their best. Maggie wants to turn off the intercom, but as she reaches for the button, she experiences pain. She's having sex flashbacks. Meredith asks Jo to step outside. Once she's gone, Maggie says there was so much hot sex. Everything hurts. She feels like she's 80. She wonders what kind of person screws the interns. Meredith says the father of her children. Maggie says she's sorry. Meredith says she's not the first person to have inappropriate work sex. Meredith confesses she hasn't thought about sex since that last morning with Derek. She's a widow. Maggie says they don't have to talk about this, but Meredith is okay with it. She's a widow, closed for business. The orgasm train doesn't roll through vagina town anymore. That part of her life is over, and she's okay with that. She tells Maggie to talk about the hot intern sex. Gabby says this is the saddest story. The orgasm train should never stop running. She has orgasms every day since she was 15 and they're wonderful. Maggie comments she was scrapbooking at that age.
April rushes to Isaac's aid as he's performing CPR on Eddie, who's been down for 10 minutes. Isaac says he gave meds. Jackson comes over and says Eddie probably lied about the ED meds. Isaac wonders why he'd do that. April says people can be stubborn, even though it's the worst thing for them. April calls time of death. Jackson tells Isaac to notify the morgue.
A suited man asks Isaac to help him find his father, who was in the accident. His name is Eddie. Isaac stammers he should go get somebody. Conner asks him to tell him. Isaac says he's had a heart attack. Conner asks if he's all right. Isaac says he can't and then that his father passed away. They think he lied about his meds. Isaac keeps on rambling about going to find someone who they can talk to, while Conner keeps asking where his father is. Conner throws Isaac into a supply rack. Owen comes over and calms down Conner, who says Isaac said his father's a liar. Owen tells the security guard to go sit Conner down. Owen turns to Isaac and asks him what he said to that man.
Arizona and Abraham are eating jell-o and talking about singles cruises. Abraham and Gabby met on a singles cruise. He didn't want to go, but his sister pushed him to get out of his chair and go meet people. He describes his chair and Arizona says its sounds like a dream. Abraham says this is a new kind of dream, as he's now also got the girl. He shows her the engagement ring he bought. Arizona says it's beautiful. Abraham says he was going to propose on the cruise on the third night, when there's a dance. They also met there for the first time and he was amazed by her dress. Arizona gets paged away, but she says she'll get back ASAP to hear the rest of his story. He asks her to bring another jell-o.
Maggie tells Gabby they're gonna put her under, but Gabby wants to tell Abe first as he'll be really worried if he thinks something's wrong with her. Meredith says they'll make sure to tell Abe. As her oxygen level drops to 87, they start anesthesizing her. Maggie sends out Jo to go update Abe. Jo objects, saying she was going to scrub in, but Meredith says they got enough hands here. She can go cover the pit. Meredith tells Gabby she can see Abe when she wakes up.
It's time for Rachel's next session. Stephanie and Hannah make Rachel stand up and they order her to take a step towards the chair so she can sit down. Rachel grasps Stephanie's arm and her eyes tell Stephanie she can't do this. Stephanie decides it's been enough and she allows Rachel to sit down on her bed. Hannah says they haven't reached her point of intolerance yet like Amelia told them to, but Stephanie firmly says it's been enough.
Jo finds Stephanie to go have lunch together, but Stephanie says she doesn't have an apetite because Shepherd's making her torture a patient. Jo says that is because Amelia likes her, but Stephanie says it's a funny way to show that. Jo wants to be more like Stephanie, who's made the system her bitch. If only she could get an attending to look at her like Amelia looks at Stephanie.
Jo and Hannah are getting ready to get Rachel back into the chair. Amelia appears in the doorway and asks Wilson for a word. Outside the room, Amelia asks her where Edwards is.
Owen has gathered the interns in the room. They have lost 6 patients already and many more are on the OR table or in the ICU. All of these people's families are on the way and they will be responsible for telling them that their loved ones have died. He thinks they need this practice after what he's seen today. There are four steps to this. They need to take the family to a quiet location, where they won't be disturbed.
The interns are in the ER, looking for the families of patients. It takes an old family member a while to get up from his chair. Mitchell offers to help out, but the man says he can do do it.
Owen says the next step is language. They can't sugarcoat it and they can't leave anything open to interpretation.
Andrew and Isaac practice this on their families.
Owen tells the interns they have to use the word "died".
Intern Jessica tells a family that Franklin is no longer with them. The granddaughter asks where her grandfather went and if they can go visit him in that place. She asks if Jessica is going to take them there. Jessica doesn't know what to say and turns to Owen.
Owen tells the interns a third step is body language. A comforting touch can help.
Andrew and Isaac put their hands on the family members' arm and shoulder. Isaac's family member hugs him.
The parents are comforting Franklin's granddaughter and tell her that grandpa is in heaven now, with her turtle. They turn to Jessica and ask why she's still there. She disappears.
Owen tells the interns to leave as soon as they've delivered the news.
Owen breaks up Isaac and the man who's still hugging him, and they leave the man alone with his grief.
As the man is still trying to get up, Mitchell decides to tell him right there in the waiting room. Owen watches from a distance and sighs.
Arizona approaches Abraham's bed carrying jell-o, but he doesn't react to her. She checks his pulse, but she finds no heartbeat. She asks who was monitoring this patient. A nurse says she checked five minutes ago. He was fine then. Arizona sighs.
Amelia is in a room with Jo and Stephanie. She can't fathom what caused Stephanie to leave her patient. She doesn't allow Jo to interfere. Stephanie says she left the patient with Jo, who's very capable. Amelia says she chose Stephanie and gave her very specific instructions and she didn't want her to hand it off to Jo. Stephanie confesses she couldn't put Rachel through it. Amelia says there must be a good reason as to why not, as Stephanie's too smart for this. Stephanie says that when she was a kid, she was in a clinical trial for sickel cell anemia. She was 5 and they held her down as they sticked her with needles and took her bone marrow. Her mom kept telling her it was for her own good. Stephanie fought and screamed, so they tied her to the table sometimes. It was for her own good. It felt like she was being punished for something that wasn't her fault, for something that was inside of her. She can't do that to someone else.
Arizona finds Owen. She's looking for Gabby as she has to tell her that Abraham passed away. He coded in the hallway, she guesses because of his age. He's 90. Owen says he's sorry and says they'll take care of this.
Arizona walks into a supply closet and starts crying. She sits down as April comes in and asks her what's going on. Arizona says nothing. She's fine and she doesn't even know why she's crying. She tells April about Abe. He met the love of his life when he was 85 and he was gonna propose to her and then he died. She felt like she could talk to him forever. He made her feel like she could find love again. She thought she had true love and that she screwed it up. And then he was madly in love at 85, and that's proof that there's still love out there for her. April starts crying as well and says she doesn't want to find a new soul mate when she's 90. She met hers already and now he wants a divorce. Arizona comforts her and says this is about her, not April. She's sorry for April.
Jo follows Stephanie into a staircase and asks her what that was. Stephanie didn't mean to throw her under the bus like that, but Jo wasn't talking about that. She wonders how Stephanie could make up a story like that. Working the system is one thing, she's on board with that, but what Stephanie did in there is crossing a line. She asks if Stephanie even has a conscience. Stephanie is visibly hurt and says it worked on Amelia, so maybe she's better off without one.
Amelia finds Jo and apologizes for overreacting. She knows Jo was just helping out a friend and she would've reacted differently if she had known about Stephanie. She invites the two of them to the dinner party, saying Stephanie could probably use the booze. Jo tells her that Stephanie is a liar. She was never sick.
Maggie and Meredith have finished. Meredith wants to go talk to Abe, but Maggie hides behind her as she sees Andrew is approaching. He wants to talk to her. Meredith asks him what she wants. He's supposed to notify Gabby that her husband is dead. Meredith says they were just shacking up, but Andrew says he put her down on next of kin on the forms. Maggie says he's an intern and checks the form. Meredith wonders why he's even doing this, he's an intern. Andrew says it's a teaching thing from Hunt, and mentions the four L's. Meredith hates those and tells Andrew not to go near Gabby. She walks off angrily to go deal with Hunt. Andrew asks Maggie what Meredith's problem is, as it's not like he wants to be doing this. Maggie says her problem is that there are rules and boundaries and some people think you can ignore those. These people think the rules go out the window just because protocol was broken once. Her problem is that hot people should know that just because someone does something reckless and likes it, it does not mean they're going to keep doing it. Her problem is she doesn't know who she is anymore and people not to give her space to figure that out and stop asking her questions and talking about jumbo condoms. That is Meredith's problem, Maggie claims. Andrew thinks he understands.
Amelia walks into the scrub room, followed by Stephanie, who's trying to get through to Amelia. Richard is still in there after his surgery. Amelia tells Richard that as residency director, he should know that Edwards abandoned a patient and told an offensive lie about being sick as a kid when asked about her motives. Amelia says she actually believed Stephanie. Richard interrupts her and asks what she wants him to do here. Stephanie says Amelia doesn't believe her on her own wants to run out, but Richard stops her. Richard says that when Stephanie applied here, he got a call from Keith Wagner at St. Jude's. That sickle cell trial was a milestone in his career, and he wanted to tell Richard how proud he was of Stephanie. Stephanie was one of the few successes to come out of that trial. Amelia doesn't understand why Jo told her she lied. Stephanie says Jo doesn't know. Stephanie doesn't talk about it anymore, because she's a surgeon, not a patient. She only tells people she can trust. Stephanie leaves the room, leaving Amelia to wonder why Stephanie didn't tell her to check the story with Webber. Richard asks Amelia how much time she's spent with Stephanie, who's been her right hand. He wonders why it was so easy to question her integrity based on the word of a doctor she barely knows. Amelia realizes she screwed up.
Meredith finds Owen to talk about sending the interns to deliver bad news. He says he's giving them a crash course. Meredith says a crash course is not how this goes. Owen reminds her it's a teaching hospital. He's told the interns about the four L's. Meredith says those are not enough. They need a lot more. Owen says that's why they need to do this. They need to experience it, be up close with it.
Meredith is talking to the interns. When you walk into the room to tell someone that their loved one has died, it's more than just a list of bullet points you've remembered. Your face is the face they'll remember for the rest of their lives. They were fine before they met you, they were living their lives, until they got a call and came to the hospital with their children so that they could be given the worst news of their lives. The interns are responsible for that moment, for the instant that the wife becomes a widow. Nobody but them. This person isn't an inconvenience. They're not a box on a list to be crossed off. They are a part of these people's lives now. They should take that seriously and recognize the importance of their role. They should respect that that person's pain is the biggest thing in the room. The interns understand.
Maggie and Meredith are watching Andrew talking to Gabby. Maggie says the orgasm train can't be closed forever. Meredith says she's really not interested to see what's out there. She's not feeling like she's missing anything. She's found that amazing love, but that's part behind her now. She has surgery and her kids and her sisters, and she's happy again. It's all she needs.
Stephanie and Hannah make Rachel stand up and walk to the chair. She knows it sucks, but they're gonna get Rachel in that chair. Rachel is in pain and hits Stephanie to let go. Stephanie tells her to keep hitting her, to focus on that, but they can't stop until she's in the chair. Rachel takes a few steps. Stephanie knows how she's feeling. Rachel takes a final step and sits down in the chair. She's breathing heavily and Stephanie tells her she's okay. She did it. Stephanie steps outside for a moment to gather herself.
Outside the room, Amelia says that was excellent. She watches Stephanie and tells her she did it very well. Stephanie gets emotional and Amelia hugs her. She says she's sorry for not believing Stephanie and says she should have. Stephanie thanks her, and then asks if Amelia isn't supposed to be going to a party right now. "Oh, crap," Amelia says.
Andrew finds Maggie and says he's sorry. He didn't mean to ignore boundaries and not do his job and he's clearly pissed her and Meredith off, so he's sorry, and if it's about last night... Maggie shushes him and takes him into a private research room. She says she was actually coming to apologize to him. The yelling was not about today. It was about last night. Andrew knew that. She says last night is not going to happy again. It was very nice, even better, but she doesn't do this. Andrew says he doesn't either. They compliment each other. It was a slip, they agree. It never happened. They shake hands on that, but they end up kissing and undressing. He lifts her up agains the door.
Richard enters the anatomy classroom with Mitchell, and allows him to slice it himself.
Amelia is taking appetizers from the kitchen to the guest. Alex and Jo are in the kitchen and take food off the plate. They came there to eat the best part. Meredith asks Amelia where Maggie is, as people are already showing up. Amelia says Maggie told her she got held up at work, but she's on her way. Stephanie tells Amelia the dryer finished early and the tablecloth's still damp, but Amelia says it's fine and tells her to put it on the table anyway. Stephanie and Jo share a tense look.
Arizona and April are sitting on the couch drinking wine and they hear a car arrive. Arizona thinks it's Jackson, but April says it's Callie. April spots the girlfriend and says she didn't know the girlfriend was a redhead. Arizona drinks all of her wine and says she needs more liquor, because she's not ready for this. As Arizona walks into the kitchen, Meredith goes to answer the door. Callie says hi and introduces her to Penny, whom Meredith recognizes as the doctor who failed to save Derek. Meredith has flashbacks of that day while Callie introduces Penny to Meredith and tells Meredith she brought wine. Penny knows who Meredith is. Meredith and Penny stare at each other, unable to speak.
Cast
Main Cast
- Ellen Pompeo as Dr. Meredith Grey
- Justin Chambers as Dr. Alex Karev
- Chandra Wilson as Dr. Miranda Bailey
- James Pickens, Jr. as Dr. Richard Webber
- Sara Ramírez as Dr. Callie Torres
- Kevin McKidd as Dr. Owen Hunt
- Jessica Capshaw as Dr. Arizona Robbins
- Sarah Drew as Dr. April Kepner
- Jesse Williams as Dr. Jackson Avery
- Caterina Scorsone as Dr. Amelia Shepherd
- Camilla Luddington as Dr. Jo Wilson
- Jerrika Hinton as Dr. Stephanie Edwards
- Kelly McCreary as Dr. Maggie Pierce
- Jason George as Dr. Ben Warren
Guest Stars
- Ann Guilbert as Gabby Margraff
- Lou Cutell as Abraham
- Giacomo Gianniotti as Dr. Andrew DeLuca
- Joe Adler as Dr. Isaac Cross
- Joe Dinicol as Dr. Mitchell Spencer
- Samantha Sloyan as Dr. Penelope Blake
- Dwayne Barnes as Conner Squire
Co-Starring
- Vivian Nixon as Intern Hannah Brody
- Chauncey Jenkins as Intern Jason Mills
- Pia Shah as Intern Jessica Pahlavi
- Louisa Abernathy as Florence (credit only)
- Marcia Ann Burrs as Fran
- Anne Johnson as Oldie 2
- Patricia Newman as Adelaide (credit only)
- Garrett Nichols as Harold
- Dianne Travis as Oldie 1
- Jack Wallace as Old Man
- Al White as Edward "Eddie" Squire
- Jeanne Syquia as Rachel Bishop
- Jenny Andrievna as Mom
- Claudia de Vasco as Nurse
- Emma Loewen as Nine Year Old
Medical Notes
Rachel Bishop
- Diagnosis:
- Increased intracranial pressure
- Doctors:
- Amelia Shepherd (neurosurgeon)
- Stephanie Edwards (surgical resident)
- Hannah Brody (surgical intern)
- Treatment:
- Decompressive craniotomy
- Early ambulation
Rachel, 32, had had a decompressive craniotomy. Amelia wanted to try early ambulation with her starting the day after her surgery. After several sessions of intense pushing, Rachel was able to walk to sit in a chair by her bedside.
Harold
- Diagnosis:
- Doctors:
- Jo Wilson (surgical resident)
- Treatment:
Harold was examined in the ER by Jo after being in a bus crash.
Fran
- Diagnosis:
- Doctors:
- Jackson Avery (plastic surgeon)
- Treatment:
Fran was examined in the ER by Jackson after being in a bus crash.
Bailey's Patient
- Diagnosis:
- Doctors:
- Miranda Bailey (general surgeon)
- Treatment:
- Surgery
Bailey took one of the patients from the bus crash up to surgery.
Edward Squire
- Diagnosis:
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Arthritis
- High cholesterol
- Erectile dysfunction
- Myocardial infarction
- Scalp laceration
- Doctors:
- Jackson Avery (plastic surgeon)
- April Kepner (trauma surgeon)
- Isaac Cross (surgical intern)
- Treatment:
- Thiazide
- Metformin
- Baby aspirin
- Nitroglycerin
- Stitches
Eddie came into the ER after a bus crash. He listed off the meds he took on a regular basis. Jackson questioned if he took erectile dysfunction meds. He denied it, so they began treatment, including stitching a cut on his forehead. He later said he had chest pain, so Isaac gave him nitroglycerin. He coded and was unable to be resuscitated, likely because he had lied about his use of ED meds.
Gabby Margraff
- Diagnosis:
- Diaphragmatic hernia
- Splenic hematoma
- Doctors:
- Meredith Grey (general surgeon)
- Maggie Pierce (cardiothoracic surgeon)
- Jo Wilson (surgical resident)
- Treatment:
- Surgery
Gabby was brought to the ER after being in a bus crash. She was taken for a CT to evaluate her internal injuries. They discovered a diaphragmatic hernia and possible splenic hematoma, so she was taken into surgery. She was stable after surgery.
Abraham
- Diagnosis:
- Contusions
- Doctors:
- Treatment:
Abe, 90, was brought to the ER after being in a bus crash. He had only minor contusions, but later died in the hospital of an unknown cause.
Stephanie Edwards
- Diagnosis:
- Sickle-Cell Anemia
- Doctors:
- Keith Wagner (pediatric hematologist)
- Treatment:
- Bone marrow transplant
Stephanie, then 5, underwent a bone marrow transplant to treat her sickle-cell anemia. She recounted the story to Jo and Amelia. She had one of the few success stories from that trial.
Music
| Song | Performer | Scene |
|---|---|---|
| "Running Behind" | Holychild |
|
| "Ignition (Remix)" (originally by R. Kelly) | The Wind + The Wave |
|
| "Believe" (originally by Cher) | Correatown |
|
| "Halo" (originally by Beyoncé) | Kris Orlowski |
|
| "Butterfly Girl" | Duran Duran |
|
Notes and Trivia
Grey's Anatomy 12x04 Promo "Old Time Rock and Roll" (HD)
- This episode's title originated from the song Old Time Rock and Roll, originally sung by Bob Seger.
- This episode scored 8.25 million viewers.
- The table read for this episode took place on August 24, 2015.
- The episode features flashbacks of How to Save a Life.
- Maggie joins the long list of attendings who have slept with interns. It's curious that Meredith didn't oppose to this relationship as she's part of the board that approved the non-fraternization policy.
- Stephanie's sickle-cell disease story was pitched by Jerrika Hinton.
- This episode features the black opening and ending title card, like the previous episode. As it usually reserved for episodes with dark themes, it probably was done due to the re-appearance of Penelope Blake.
- Goof: The visitor badges say it's October 11th, but Alex says it's the 14th.
Gallery
Episode Stills
Behind the Scenes
Quotes
- Meredith: I'm a widow. I mean, like in the books and the movies. You don't think that that happens, but it does. It's just... I'm closed for business. Vagina city's a ghost town. Orgasm train doesn't roll through here anymore. That part of my life is over.
- Maggie: You know, eventually, you'll... when you're ready...
- Meredith: No. I don't want to. It's fine. I'm okay. I'm good. So, tell me about the hot, hot sex with the hot intern and how he did you sideways because I am widow Grey, dead inside.
- Maggie: It's not closed forever, right? The orgasm train will chug into the station again.
- Meredith: It just... I'm just not wondering what's out there. Not feeling like I'm missing anything. I've had that great, amazing love. And that part's behind me now, and I have the kids and you guys and surgery, and... I'm happy. And I never thought I would be again and I am. And that's all I need.
- Arizona: See? I can do this. I can do this. I'm excited. It's cool, I'm cool.
- April: Yeah, cool people don't say they're cool.
- Meredith: When you walk into a room to tell someone that their loved one has died, it's more than just a list of bullet points you've memorized. Yours is the face they will remember for the rest of their life. They were fine before they met you. They picked up their children from school, they made dinner, and they got a call. The police showed up at their door and brought them here with those children to this room so that you can give them the worst news of their entire life. You are changing this person's life forever. You are responsible for this moment. For the instant that person goes from wife to widow is you. All you. Nobody but you. So, this person isn't an inconvenience. They are not a box on a list to be checked off. You are a part of their life now. Your words, your face. So take that seriously and recognize the importance of your role. And respect the fact that that person's pain is the biggest thing in the room. You got it?
- Arizona: Abe. He was... in love. He met the love of his life when he was 85, and he was gonna propose to her. But he died.
- April: Oh. I'm sorry.
- Arizona: God, I felt like I could talk to him forever. He made me feel like... you know, I never really believed that I'd find love again. Not anything real or true. I thought that I had it and I screwed it up, and that was over. Then he was madly in love at 85, and that is proof that there is... there is more love out there. Callie might've found hers and I can find mine, even if it's in 60 years.
- April: (crying) I don't want to find a new soul mate when I'm 90! I met mine already and he wants a divorce.
- Arizona: Aww, sweetie. This is about me. This isn't about you.
- Stephanie: When I was a kid, I was in a clinical trial for sickle cell anemia. What? I was 5. They held me down, the nurses and the doctors, sticking me with needles and taking my bone marrow. You can't imagine the pain. And my mom would be saying over and over, "Honey, it's for your own good. It's for your own good." I screamed and I kicked and I fought, and so sometimes they would strap me to the table, which they were right to do. For my own good. I was 5. I felt like I was being punished for something that I didn't do, for something that was inside of me. And I'm not gonna do that to somebody else. I'm sorry. I can't. I won't.
- Alex: You people need adult supervision.
- Amelia: I don't understand why Wilson told me you lied.
- Stephanie: Because Wilson doesn't know. Because I don't talk about it anymore because I'm not a patient anymore. I am a surgeon. And when I do talk about it, I only tell people I can trust.
See Also
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A complete overview of this episode's crew can be found here. |
| Grey's Anatomy Season 12 | ||||||
| #01 | "Sledgehammer" | #09 | "The Sound of Silence" | #17 | "I Wear the Face" | |
| #02 | "Walking Tall" | #10 | "All I Want is You" | #18 | "There's a Fine, Fine Line" | |
| #03 | "I Choose You" | #11 | "Unbreak My Heart" | #19 | "It's Alright, Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)" | |
| #04 | "Old Time Rock and Roll" | #12 | "My Next Life" | #20 | "Trigger Happy" | |
| #05 | "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" | #13 | "All Eyez on Me" | #21 | "You're Gonna Need Someone on Your Side" | |
| #06 | "The Me Nobody Knows" | #14 | "Odd Man Out" | #22 | "Mama Tried" | |
| #07 | "Something Against You" | #15 | "I Am Not Waiting Anymore" | #23 | "At Last" | |
| #08 | "Things We Lost in the Fire" | #16 | "When It Hurts So Bad" | #24 | "Family Affair" | |
| << Season 11 | Season 13 >> | |||||