Doctor series
Doctor series are television series that depict the everyday life of doctors , nurses , medical assistants and patients working in doctors ' offices or hospitals . Typical for doctor series are interpersonal conflicts between doctors or hospital staff and the patient, and in more recent series also the use of medical terminology .
characterization
Form and staging
In contrast to soap operas, there is usually no infinite plot in doctor series. Each episode is mostly self-contained, but often moves with a linear level of action. Cliffhangers are also rarely used, which are used to leave the plot open by means of a particularly dramatic event at the end of an episode so that the viewer gets the appropriate introduction to the next episode. Each episode deals with a certain topic (which can differ from character to character), but the plot is mostly based on the previous episode only to a certain extent.
Doctor's series also differ from soap operas in terms of narrative speed . While in soap operas it is important that the viewer can still follow the plot even if he has missed a few episodes, this is not a decisive criterion for the popularity of a series with hospital series, since at the beginning of an episode there is usually a small flashback in form a clip is shown or the actions (important for the relevant narrative strands) are briefly discussed again at the beginning of the episode.
Doctor series (like other TV series) cannot be precisely determined in terms of the narrative speed. Some series (for example Emergency Room ) deal with several narrative threads per episode, which usually end at the same time. This can be up to 18 storylines that run parallel to each other and create a hectic atmosphere. Other series (such as Scrubs ) tend to focus on a few storylines, although not all characters are always present and have an actual role in the episode. For example, a main line is created that revolves around the main character, from whose point of view hospital life is portrayed, i.e. the narrative perspective always starts from the main character, regardless of whether he or she plays in the episode or a certain scene or not. The other strands form a network, without which the main strand would not function. The main character also often takes a stand at the end of the episode and draws a conclusion from the plot of the previous episode.
A doctor series is usually broadcast weekly at the same time on the same day of the week. Unlike soap operas, which follow a very slow narrative pace, the action of US hospital series usually takes place within one shift . This means that it begins at the beginning of the shift and ends at the end of the shift. Since doctors' shifts sometimes last more than 48 hours, the plot is very condensed.
subjects
The topics of doctor series are mostly interpersonal problems between doctors and nursing staff , working relationships between senior physicians, assistant physicians and chief physicians as well as conflicts with patients and their relatives. The focus of the plot is often dying as a result of murder , suicide , rape , fights , dangerous diseases and / or harmless diseases that have not been treated for a long time and now pose a serious risk.
Often times, the plot revolves around a medical specialty such as surgery , pediatrics, or intensive care medicine . Different types of characters can often be found in series (e.g. the nerd, the failure, the honest, the macho ). Political, religious and ethical issues such as racism , discrimination , religious freedom , euthanasia , palliative medicine, etc. also play a major role.
Doctors and surgeons are not always in the foreground of a series of doctors. There are also series in which the main characters are nurses or nursing students. The focus of doctor series is usually either the concrete medical procedure and the ethical problem as well as the interpersonal dimensions or the main focus is on the comedic area.
Examples of doctor and hospital series
German series
German doctor and hospital series are usually produced in a similarly uncomplicated format as soap operas , but they are still very popular. They represent (more or less realistically) everyday life within a German hospital. One of the most successful German hospital series is The Black Forest Clinic and, from the present, the Saxon Clinic .
- alphateam - The lifesavers in the operating room (hospital series, 1996-2005, Sat.1)
- Betty's diagnosis (hospital series, since 2015, ZDF)
- Der Bergdoktor (doctor series, Sat.1, 1992–1997)
- Der Bergdoktor (doctor series, since 2008, ZDF)
- The country doctor (doctor series, 1986–2012, ZDF)
- The children's clinic (hospital series, 1993/1998)
- The Black Forest Clinic (hospital series, 1985–1989, ZDF)
- Doctor's Diary (hospital series, 2007-2010, RTL & ORF)
- Doctor Martin (doctor series, 2006–2009, ZDF)
- Dr. Klein (hospital series, since 2014, ZDF)
- Dr. Stefan Frank - The doctor whom women trust (doctor series, 1995-2001, RTL)
- Family Dr. Kleist (doctor series, since 2004, ARD)
- Friends for Life (Doctor Series, 1992-2001, ZDF)
- Just in case Stefanie (hospital series, 1995-2004, Sat.1)
- Hafenkrankenhaus (hospital series, 1968, ARD)
- Hello Uncle Doc! (Hospital series, 1994–2000, Sat.1)
- Cardiac fibrillation - The Clinic at the Lake (hospital series, 2010–2012, ZDF)
- Heartbeat - The North Medical Team (hospital series, 1999-2003, ZDF, from season 4 as Heartbeat - The Rescuers )
- In all friendship (hospital series, since 1998, ARD)
- In all friendship - The young doctors (hospital series, since 2015, ARD)
- In all friendship - the nurses (hospital series, since 2018, ARD)
- Clinic under palm trees (hospital series, 1996-2003, ARD)
- Klinikum Berlin Mitte - life in readiness (hospital series, 1999–2001, Pro Sieben)
- Country doctor Dr. Brock (doctor series, 1967–1969, ARD)
- Nikola (hospital series, 1996-2005, RTL)
- OR calls Dr. Bruckner (hospital series, 1996–1999, RTL)
- Bülowbogen practice (doctor series, 1987–1996, ARD)
- St. Angela (hospital series, 1997-2004, ARD)
- City Clinic (hospital series, 1993–2000, RTL)
American series
US hospital series are usually produced in an elaborate format and are usually very popular. They depict everyday life within a US hospital (which is very different from that of German hospitals).
- Chief Physician Dr. West phall
- Chicago Hope - end of the line hope
- Chicago Med
- Code Black
- Doogie Howser, MD
- Dr. House
- Emergency Room - The emergency room
- General Hospital
- Grey's Anatomy
- Hawthorne
- Heartbeat - the heartbeat of life
- Miami Medical
- Emergency Call California
- Nurse Jackie
- Private Practice (a spin-off of the series Gray's Anatomy )
- Scrubs - The beginners
- Trapper John, MD
- The Good Doctor
- The Night Shift
- Emily Owens MD
- Royal Pains
- The kink
Series from other countries
- All Saints - Australian Hospital Series
- Casualty - British Hospital Series (since 1986)
- Doctors - British hospital series
- Green Wing - British hospital series
- Holby City - British hospital series (since 1999), spin-off from Casualty
- Dr. Monroe - British Hospital Series
- The Flying Doctors - Australian Doctors and Hospitals Series
- The hospital on the outskirts of the city - Czechoslovak hospital series
- Interny - Russian hospital comedy series
- Shortland Street - New Zealand Hospital Series
- Trauma 24/7 - Dutch hospital series
- Zeg 'ns Aaa - Dutch doctor series about dentists (1981–1993)
- Zeg 'ns Aaa - Dutch doctor series about dentists (2009-2010)
criticism
Critics criticize the lack of reference to reality in doctor series. Viewers would either be deterred or, in an emergency, tempted to act wrongly in order to emulate their series heroes. Since many medical measures do not correspond in hospital series of the reality and many diseases often incorrectly diagnosed would and treated advise critics from getting attach medical and hospital series too much importance.
A successful series includes hectic and the most spectacular medical interventions possible, but laypeople in particular should not learn any medical tricks from the heroes of the respective hospital series. In addition, the "everyday occurrences", especially in the US hospital series, frighten many viewers, so that if they should ever have to go to a hospital they would be particularly afraid of leaving themselves in the hands of the doctors.
A US study also found that consumers of such series see themselves and those around them as much more at risk of disease than usual. This significantly reduces the quality of life.
literature
- Gitta Düperthal: Love and urges in the emergency room. Doctor and hospital series on television , in: Dr. med. Mabuse, Vol. 24, No. 117 (January / February 1999), pp. 24-27, ISSN 0173-430X
- Jason Jacobs: Body Trauma TV. The New Hospital Dramas British Film Institute , London 2003, ISBN 0-85170-881-1
- Susanne Schwarzer: Media-critical analysis - The doctor on television ( Memento from November 20, 2008 in the Internet Archive ), in: Sanofi Aventis website from February 6, 2008
Individual evidence
- ↑ Hafenkrankenhaus on fernsehserien.de
- ↑ Heartbeat - the rescuers on fernsehserien.de
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ [2]
- ↑ Question of the week on Süddeutsche.de "Do doctor series make you sick?"
- ^ Criticism of hospital series in the Deutsches Ärzteblatt
- ↑ Criticism of hospital series in the Süddeutsche Zeitung ( memento of the original from April 26, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Article Doctor series fans have too high expectations from Welt Online
- ↑ Techniker Krankenkasse: Doctor series have an effect on patient expectations ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Doctor's series could make you afraid of surgery Article at Spiegel Online
- ^ Study (abstract): Beyond Materialism: The Role of Health-Related Beliefs in the Relationship Between Television Viewing and Life Satisfaction Among College Students