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Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves

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“ One of the more harrowing parts of complex heart surgeries is the moment we wean the patient off the cardiopulmonary bypass machine. We start slowly warming the patient. As the patient's temperature rises, we check to make sure all of the air has been removed from the heart. Once the aortic cross-clamp is removed, all eyes are on the heart for that moment of truth. Will it start to beat? Acceptance letters, medical scans, the next morning's news. We all have moments in which we want to hide from the results. But instead of closing your eyes and delaying the inevitable, find someone to hold your hand and face it with you. ”

Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves is the tenth episode of the nineteenth season and the 410th overall episode of Grey's Anatomy.

Short Summary[]

Catherine returns to Grey Sloan for a surgical case that makes Lucas and Blue queasy. Amelia treats a possible cancer patient with a family that's a little too supportive. Owen takes his medical future into his own hands, much to Teddy's surprise.

Full Summary[]

A frustrated Simone jumps out of bed as she can't bear listening to the noises coming from Lucas's room.

Lucas greets Simone in the kitchen and notes she's up early. She says she couldn't sleep and refuses to pour him coffee. Cara Ford enters. He hands her a travel mug and tells her to bring it back tonight. Cara kisses him goodbye as Mika brings in a box of free stuff from a house down the street. There are some dresses in there. Mika asks if she can officiate the wedding but Simone points out she hardly knows her.

Maggie enters Amelia's room looking to borrow a shirt. Amelia goes to make breakfast but Maggie warns her they're out of the good granola. Amelia's texting with Kai.

Richard is surprised to find Catherine with Taya, Seattle's most highly regarded reiki practitioner. Richard is confused.

Jo and Levi arrive at work as they argue over who has the biggest workload. Levi suddenly spots Carlos and hides behind Jo. He tells her about his interaction with Carlos, who thinks he's cool. Therefor, he doesn't want to be seen in his bike helmet or with his messy hair.

Teddy forgot to assign Owen a supervisor. He's in dire need since he was granted an appeal from the medical commission. They're sending a preceptor today and if he passes the assessment, they will temporarily reinstate his license. Owen thinks that will fix his issues with Teddy.

Levi hands out assignments to the interns and warns them not to need him today since he will be operating with Catherine today. Link comes to return his interns, Benson and Lucas, since all his surgeries were cancelled. Catherine comes up and invites the interns to come fix a penis with her.

Richard and Jules check in on Natalia Asaki, currently post-op day 2. The incision is healing well. Their friends chipped in to send them on a divorce honeymoon and they are planning on going to Europe to see sunsets. Richard knows how travel can enrich the soul. The next step is a PET scan to re-stage the cancer.

Simone presents the case of Barbara Collins, who came in to have a tumor removed. It has yet to be determined if the mass if cancerous or benign. Her sisters, Didi and Paula, flew in from Boston to offer their support. They never miss a cancer diagnosis and now Barbara finally gets to join the club. Didi had breast cancer, Carol had skin cancer, and Paula had butt cancer. They're excited that Barbara will finally get to join them at cancer camp this year. Paula brought champagne. Didi brought Carol, whose ashes are in a box. She beat cancer and died after falling off a ladder. They take her everywhere.

Teddy apologizes to Bailey for the fighting at the dinner party and offers her a cappuccino. Teddy compliments her pie. Bailey knows she's buttering her up and tells her that, as her boss, she can just tell her what to do. Teddy asks her to be Owen's supervisor but Bailey refuses. She's rooting for Owen, though. Teddy then approaches Link.

Levi, Catherine, Benson, and Lucas arrive outside their patient's room. Gerald Lien has Peyronie's disease, an inflammatory condition causing a bend in the penis. Catherine introduces Gerald to the surgical team. Gerald hopes they can fix it so he can stop avoiding his wife. Gerald hasn't told anyone about the surgery. He has claimed to be at a conference. The doctors leave to review the penile ultrasound.

Amelia has Mika fetch coffee for Barbara's sisters, who insist on a coffee for Carol as well.

The penile ultrasound shows a severe bend in the penis, causing the interns to wonder how Gerald has been peeing. Over time, the fibrous plaques causing the bend can calcify. Catherine urges the interns to come extremely prepared. Once she's gone, Levi gives the interns time to get all of the jokes out of their system after warning them about the bloody mess that is penile surgery.

Dr. Patel instructs Owen to pretend he's not there. Link follows them to Mr. Williams, who came in with a head lac. The patient recognizes Link and refuses to be treated by him. Owen assures him he's just there to observe, which leads to him revealing that he is on probation himself. The patient requests another doctor.

Jules and Elliot walk Natalia to her PET scan while she is already planning the Venice trip. Jules has never been to Europe but she's always wanted to go to Paris some day. Natalia diagnoses her with a case of the "somedays". When you live in "someday", you waste today. Elliot says Natalia knocked that out of him. Natalia suddenly throws up blood. Jules has Richard paged.

Mika and Simone join Benson and Lucas in the cafeteria. Mika will be sleeping in her van if Lucas bring "that hyena" home again tonight. Lucas points out that is not a threat and leaves while Mika re-iterates her point that people need sleep.

Teddy and Bailey observe how Monica, another ER patient, is yelling at Owen. She's sure that she has a UTI but Owen wants to do a full work-up to confirm the diagnosis. The patient is pressed for time and decides to just use her friend's leftover antibiotics and leaves against Owen's recommendation.

Levi has Gerald's type and screen sent to the lab. Once they're alone, Gerald asks if things don't go smoothly, the bend could be permanent. Levi admits there is risk of additional damage though that only happens in 20% of the cases. Gerald talks about his wife Gloria, whom he nicknames Glow. He never told her because he didn't want her looking at him differently. After hearing that they have been married for 37 years, Levi comments it sounds like it's permanent, no matter the outcome of the surgery.

Natalia's CT reveals that the tumor has eroded into the posterior mediastinum and her aorta. Maggie wouldn't know where to begin to resect it. Winston comes in to answer her page but he, too, sees no viable option. They can only offer palliative care.

The doctors inform Natalia of the bad news. She doesn't have long, a few days at best. The doctors offer to help tell Elliot but Natalia refuses. She thinks he doesn't need to say goodbye. He can't handle it. She wants to pretend so they can plan their trip.

Jo finds Levi. She got intel on Carlos from nurse Staci. Levi says it sounds like stalking. Jo doesn't understand what the big deal is since he broke up with Nico over a year ago. Levi wonders why good-looking people are always the first to tell people like him that it is not a big deal.

Dr. Patel blocks off Owen's questions about his personal life. Paramedics bring in Edgar Reyes, who was in an MVC and suffered blunt trauma to the chest. Owen finds subcutaneous emphysema as Edgar desats. The X-ray reveals a deviated trachea. There may be a trachael injury so Link urges Owen to wait for the bronchoscopy. Owen deems they don't have the time. He has Winston paged and makes an incision in Edgar's chest as Dr. Patel watches him closely.

In the OR, Catherine induces an erection with papaverine and quizzes the interns as to why. Lucas says the penis needs to be erect to place the correct anatomic marking. She asks Benson where she should make the incision but he stays silent, so Lucas answers instead. As Catherine makes the incision, blood squirts out and Benson faints. Catherine is unfazed; she would have put her money on Lucas. Levi orders Lucas to take Benson out of the OR, so Lucas drags him out.

Amelia is wheeling a worried Barbara to the OR while her sister keep on assuring her that she will be fine. Amelia claims they need to rush as Barbara's pulse is thready. Once the sisters are gone, Amelia assures Barbara she just wanted to give her the space she needs.

Jules finds Elliot sitting outside. Natalia send him to get hot chocolate, which she only does when she knows things are getting worse. He asks if Natalia is dying. Jules says he should be having this conversation with his wife. He guesses about how much time he has left with her. Jules's silence informs him she may be dying today. He needs a minute to gather himself.

Owen has finished putting in the chest tube. He explains to dr. Patel that they had to perform a clam shell incision to get a better visualization for the preliminary tracheal repair. Edgar's sats rise but he remains hemodynamically unstable. Winston and Link take Edgar up to the OR for an exploration and definitive tracheal repair. Dr. Patel appears unpleased with Owen's actions and leaves.

Jules leaves Natalia's room as she and Elliot are planning the trip. Richard finds her as she takes a deep breath. Jules hates that they are doing nothing. They should be doing everything they can think of. Jules became a surgeon to fix people but they are failing Natalia and Elliot. Richard says this powerlessness is the worst part of the job. Taking her back to the OR would only mean killing her faster. The best surgeons learn how to live with that.

Amelia, Simone, and Mika meet Barbara in the OR. Before she is put under, Barbara asks her surgeons not to let her sisters carry her around in a box if she were to die.

Bailey heard that Owen did an intracavitary intubation. She is not surprised that his preceptor left. Owen says he thrives on order and protocol but he knows to break the rules when it can save a life. His license was suspended because he fundamentally disagrees with the law. And he would do anything to get it back and patch things up with Teddy, but having obeyed the rules today would have resulted in Edgar's death. He can't do this job any other way. Bailey says everybody knows that. She suggests he apologize for everything he got wrong rather than constantly defend the things he got right.

Levi and Catherine leave Gerald's room. Gerald's wife is waiting for them outside the room. She has known all along since she handles the insurance papers. She wanted to wait until he was ready to tell her. She respects his pride enough to pretend. Catherine tells her that the surgery went well. Gloria only wanted to know that he was okay. She'll wait for his call.

Richard informs Natalia that they'll adjust her medication as her pain may increase over the coming hours. Maggie leaves the room as Natalia and Elliot fantasize about seeing the sunset while eating at a particular restaurant in Venice. Natalia caresses Elliot' face as he talks about how they'll keep travelling around Italy until they run out of money. Time passes as they continue to plan while Natalia grows weaker. Eventually, Richard disconnects her from all monitors and Elliot climbs into bed with her as Jules and Maggie watch from outside. Soon after, Natalia passes away in Elliot's arms.

Benson tells Lucas to go ahead and say whatever he has to say. Lucas can't bring himself to say anything. Benson admits he fainted when he saw a penis bleeding like a fire hydrant. They found the one thing that makes dr. Benson Kwan squeamish. Lucas says he missed out on the surgery because of him. Benson owes him. Benson agrees to do his progress notes for two weeks. Lucas stares at him and comments he's sizing up the competition and liking his odds.

Amelia is checking on Barbara post-op. They got all the tumor out and pathology confirmed it was a colloid cyst, thus a benign tumor. Barbara does not have cancer. Her sisters are sure she'll get cancer eventually. Barbara yells that she does not want cancer. No matter how positively they act about it, it is not fun. They have to stop making her feel guilty for being healthy and they have to stop carrying around their dead sister. Mika agrees it's very weird. Paula and Didi admit cancer sucks and Paula reveals that she left Carol in Reno in 2007. They have been carrying around cat litter for 15 years. The sisters laugh.

Owen goes to see Teddy in her office. She heard what happened. Owen apologizes for having made decisions that affected her life and their kids, for how he couldn't bring himself to properly talk about it with her, and for distracting himself with his attractive surf partner. Teddy apologizes for not having been supportive when he struggled with the possibility of losing his career, for resorting to drinking rather and lashing out rather than talking. She knows he never meant to hurt her or the kids. She loves him and always will. Also, dr. Patel informed her that he passed. She reinstates him as Head of Trauma.

Mika is laughing at Benson for fainting. He claims he forgot to eat breakfast but she saw him eat a bagel and a sandwich. A distraught Jules appears in the doorway. She says Natalia died. Mika makes Benson and Jules come with her.

In the locker room, Lucas tries to talk to Simone about Benson but she shuts him down. She is tired because she didn't get any sleep. He thinks there is something more going on. Trey calls her. As she picks up, Cara appears to leave with Lucas. Simone is distracted from the call as they leave.

Levi catches up with Jo and informs her that Catherine let him place the graft, which he did flawlessly. He's not Glasses anymore. He is a successful Chief Resident and he deserves to claim it. He asks Jo what unit Carlos is on.

Levi finds Carlos and asks him to grab a drink with him. He's working a double shift now but tomorrow works for him.

Richard finds Catherine asleep in the lounge. She laughs about Benson fainting. Richard recalls that they met a Reiki healer in Kyoto who talked about Reiki for pain management. Richard knows that something is wrong and she is trying to protect him, but he is ready to hear it. She takes his hand and says her cancer is progressing. He comforts her.

Amelia finds Maggie on a bench outside. Maggie asks to stay at her place one more night. She feels like she has worn out her welcome so she's going to check into a hotel. Amelia points out Maggie has been stealing her clothes and food for years now. Maggie says that was different because they were living together because of their connection to Meredith, so Amelia didn't have a choice. Amelia says Meredith moving changes nothing between the two of them. They go home together.

Simone comes home and hears laughter upstairs.

She finds Mika, Jules, and Benson together in Mika's room. As Benson is painting a door, Mika and Jules are trying on the ugly dresses from the box Mika brought home that morning. Benson refuses to try on a dress. As they toast with beers, Simone confirms that the girls are invited to her wedding. She'll get back to Benson about an invite.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Guest Stars[]

Co-Starring[]

Medical Notes[]

Natalia Asaki[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Stage II adenosarcoma of the esophagus
  • Treatment:
    • Palliative care

Natalia, 32, was two days post-op on a right craniotomy to remove a metastatic lesion from her brain. She was healing well from her surgery. She was scheduled for a PET scan, but started coughing up blood on the way. The PET scan showed that her esophageal tumor had eroded into her aorta and posterior mediastinum. This caused her to bleed into her chest. Both Maggie and Winston concluded that it was unresectable. They gave Natalia pain medication to keep her comfortable until she died.

Barbara Collins[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Colloid cyst
  • Treatment:
    • Transventricular endoscopic resection

Barbara, 45, had a tumor in the center region of her brain. She was in the hospital to have surgery to remove it. Once it was removed, the tissue would be sent to pathology to determine if it was malignant or benign. After the surgery, they determined it was a benign colloid cyst.

Gerald Lien[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Peyronie's disease
  • Treatment:
    • Penile placation graft

Gerald, 60, was in the hospital to have surgery to treat Peyronie's disease, which caused painful, curved erections. Catherine did surgery to remove the plaques that had formed and place a xenograft. After the surgery, she said it had gone well.

Robert Williams[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Head laceration
  • Treatment:

Robert was in the ER with a cut on his forehead. When he learned Owen was on probation, he refused to let Owen treat him.

Monica Nadal[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Dysuria
  • Treatment:

Monica was in the ER with pain upon urination. She was upset because she had to wait to get a full work-up to be diagnosed with a UTI. She said she didn't want to wait and would just used a friend's leftover antibiotics.

Edgar Reyes[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Blunt trauma to the chest
    • Deviated trachea
    • Subcutaneous emphysema
  • Treatment:
    • Clamshell thoracotomy

Edgar, 38, came into the ER after a car accident. He had blunt trauma to his chest. He had diminished breath sounds on both sides. He'd been intubated and had needle decompressions in the field. Owen saw subcutaneous emphysema and an x-ray showed a deviated trachea. Owen decided to open his chest in the ER to restore the flow of oxygen. Once that was done, he was moved to the OR for an exploration and tracheal repair.

Benson Kwan[]

  • Diagnosis:
    • Syncope
  • Treatment:

Benson fainted after seeing a penis bleeding in the OR. Lucas took him to a room and monitored him.

Music[]

Song Performer Scene
"I Am Here" Lindsey Ray, Taiina
  • Richard explains the process to Natalia.
  • Natalia and Elliot plan their trip.
  • The doctors watch as Natalia gets weaker.
  • Elliot holds her as she dies.
"Only Going Up from Here" Ruby Amanfu feat. Yacht Money
  • Lucas leaves with Cara.
  • Levi tells Jo about his day.
  • He asks Carlos to get a drink.
"Chasing the Light" Molly Kate Kestner
  • Catherine tells Richard her cancer is progressing.
  • Maggie asks Amelia to stay one more night.
  • Amelia says they're still there for each other, even without Meredith.
  • The interns try on clothes together.

Notes and Trivia[]

  • This episode's title originated from the song Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves, originally sung by Eurythmics.
  • This episode scored 3.46 million viewers.[1]
  • As Amelia is taking Barbara to the OR, the OR schedule whiteboard can be seen in the background while it was replaced by a digital screen earlier in the season.

Gallery[]

Episode Stills[]

Quotes[]

See Also[]

A complete overview of this episode's crew can be found here.

References[]

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