As the US recently surpassed the 100,000 mark of deaths due to the Coronavirus epidemic, here is a pre-COVID Netflix docuseries zeroing in on the Lenox Hill Hospital in the Upper East Side.
While the documentary is similar to popular hospital dramas like Grey’s Anatomy which came long before COVID, it is now bound to hold much more relevance and emotional relatability.
Its peek into the inner workings of a hospital which deems itself world-class will come as a tribute to all health workers around the world, who are in the frontlines of this pandemic.
Centered around the lives of four doctors of the Lenox Hill Hospital in New York, the series has been created and directed by Ruthie Shatz and Adi Barash.
It follows brain surgeons David Langer and John Boockvar, emergency room physician Mirtha Macri and Chief Resident OB/GYN Amanda Little-Richardson, as they traverse the emotional and complex business of tending the sick.
As per the official synopsis, the series will show a glimpse of “complicated births, brain surgeries, and other high-pressure situations that are part of a normal day at the hospital.”
The 8-part docuseries was shot between April 2018 and November 2019, coincidentally ending just before the Coronavirus pandemic began in China. On Wednesday, Netflix released the first trailer for the series which will premiere on June 10.
At one point in the trailer, we hear Dr. Little-Richardson saying, “I think there’s such a thing as a calling; this is the space I’m supposed to be in,” as images of her delivering a baby flash across the screen.
Brief history of Lenox Hill Hospital
The trailer begins with the narrator describing the Lenox Hill Hospital as a “sleepy, little Upper East Side hospital competing with some of the greatest health institutions in the world.”
However, the hospital has a history that goes back over a century to 1857 when the German Dispensary was born, located at the Canal Street. The hospital mainly catered to the residents of the local neighborhood, Little Germany.
By 1905, it was renamed German Hospital and shifted to its current location on the 77th street. Around this time, Little Germany also moved from 77th Street to Yorkville, a predominantly white neighborhood. The Lenox Hill area remains till date a white-dominated locality with over 75% white population.
However, following the first World War, the hospital was renamed Lenox Hill after the hill it stood on. The decision was made in view of distancing the hospital from the American enemy.
Some celebrity patients of this ‘sleepy hospital’ include former UK Prime Mknister Winston Churchill, former first lady of US Pat Nixon, John Kennedy Jr among others. This hospital also saw popular births. Lady Gaga was born here, so were the children of Beyonce and Jay Z, Tina Fey, and Seth Meyers.
Controversial expansion
In 2019, the Lenox Hill Hospital’s $2.5 billion plan to revamp the infrastructure was struck down by the local community. The move was criticized for not introducing any new beds to the hospital but instead “prioritizing the hospital as a medical tourism destination” over providing affordable healthcare.
Despite the community voting against the proposed plan, their word is not final, but only advisory. The hospital authorities remain in the process of having their proposal accepted at many levels of the state structure.
It will be interesting to see how the film will consider these aspects in the documentary.
One of the statements by the show creator Shatz said in a press release, “This global crisis has shined a limelight on the healthcare community, the sacrifices they’re making, and the resources they need to do their jobs. I hope that people remember all of that.”
It is likely that the docuseries will start interesting and equally important debates once it hits Netflix in June.
Sources: People, Etoline, Popsugar, Rollingstone, TVInsider
No Comments on Netflix’s Docuseries Lenox Hill: A Peek into American Healthcare