Doctors Rank The Best Medical TV Shows: ‘Scrubs,’ ‘Chicago Med,’ ‘Code Black’ Top List

Medical TV series are seriously addicting. So much so that many viewers pretend they can actually diagnose illnesses and identify the right medical interventions whenever a problem arises in real life. Unfortunately, many forget that these are all just for show — and some can be very inaccurate.

On the other hand, there are some shows that put a huge premium in producing near-realistic processes and diagnoses. Here are the top five TV shows about doctors and the medical profession that are considered the most accurate, according to doctors themselves.

1. "Scrubs"

This show is all about the rigors of residency training process and how the elements of a hospital interact with each other. The series may be mostly funny, but that all depicts the regular banter among staff, as well as the pressures they face every day. That’s not to mention the realistic cases they deal with on the show.

2. "Chicago Med"

This series has been rated by its medical advisor Andrew Dennis to be 85 percent accurate. To make sure that every episode is as real as possible, the show reportedly has a rule that writers should only feature published medical cases.

3. "Code Black"

The title refers to an emergency room that is understaffed but overcrowded, but outside the medical field, it can also refer to serious threats. Unfortunately, the show was canceled after just three seasons. It had a mix of positive and negative reviews from people in the medical field, some of whom said that it’s not possible for a doctor to follow a patient all the time, especially in an E.R. environment such as what is depicted on the show.

4. "E.R."

"E.R.," which stars a young George Clooney and Noah Wyle among others, depicts the stressful life of emergency room doctors and nurses. The medical drama lasted on the air for 15 years, which says a lot about its support from both the medical and non-medical audience.

5. "The Good Doctor"

While this show about a specially gifted doctor with autism has its share of errors, it received praise online for at least being accurate with its treatments, jargons and diagnoses.

“Grey’s Anatomy” may be hugely popular, but it’s not the most accurate. The frequent intimate escapades in dark closets, bypassing of superiors and doctors making preventable errors without repercussions are far from what happens in real life. The show is engaging all right, but it fails in merging its show value goals with realism.

Of course, one can’t really expect TV shows about doctors to be highly correct because there’s no fun in having no drama on your screen, right? Regardless, these programs scored pretty good marks among the real professionals, albeit having their share of errors. Still, viewers should always be reminded these are TV shows and do not represent real-life. Being a medical professional requires continuous and arduous study because it deals with human lives — something that cannot be learned from just watching on the screen.