Goodbyes are never final in Grey's Anatomy and news that Jesse Williams and Sarah Drew are set to reprise their roles as Jackson Avery and April Kepner in the season 18 finale has fans thrilled and excited. Apart from having a great love story, the characters portrayed by the two are considered some of the most skilled doctors in the series.
Eighteen years is a long time and during this period, the ABC medical drama has featured plenty of other amazing doctors. Many of them have been great characters overall, with interesting love lives and drama-filled moments. But which doctors should patients really trust with their lives? Redditors have their say.
Arizona Robbins
The former Head of Fetal Surgery is considered one of the most likable Grey's Anatomy characters ever. YouKnow_Pause feels there is no one better than her, writing "She’s so good with her patients, from preemie babies to kids to teens to moms." They add, "Karev got a whole heck of a lot better after Arizona started teaching him."
Being good at your job means being able to do something that others can't and the fact that patients flew in from all over the country just so Arizona could attend to them says a lot about her abilities. Furthermore, she's one of the few characters whose reputation was already big before her appearance on the show. When Bailey prepares to work with Arizona for the first time, Richard tells her "She's the best that anyone's seen in a long time." Richard's words are to be believed since no one spots talent better than him.
Derek Shepherd
GreySocializer states that Derek is one of the best because "he was a world-renowned Neurosurgeon and had the government/president practically begging to take him on at one point." During his time on the series, Derek serves as the Head of Neurosurgery as well as a board director at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.
On the show, the Brain Mapping Initiative is meant to be a huge part of the President's legacy, so his choice proves that Derek is the true medical superstar. And the President doesn't just ask, he begs. Other people place much trust in the neurosurgeon too as he is known to take on delicate cases that no one else will touch. Additional evidence of Derek's awesomeness is in his 2 clinical trials: one involving the injection of a live virus into a tumor and another involving the cure for Alzheimer's.
Callie Torres
ParkOk7246 roots for Callie, reminding everyone that "she made human bones out of nothing when she was only a resident." They add, "every attending wanted to work with her and not with the head of traumatology." In the medical drama, Callie serves as Head of Orthopedic Surgery before relocating to New York.
The Redditor is spot on about Callie's abilities. Creating hands and legs out of nothing literally makes her a magician. History also shows that she has been a top-tier doctor from the very first. During the intern exam, she was the one with the best notes and she got to head the Otho department when she was just a resident.
Cristina Yang
Redditor Grey's Anatomy characters fans wish would return. She spends a couple of years in Seattle before relocating to Switzerland to become the Director of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the Klausman Institute for Medical Research.
Cristina's tale of impressive feats is a long one. She has done it all, from successfully operating with a gun pointed at her (something that could make most surgeons freak out) to performing Burke’s surgeries when she was only in her 2nd year. Even more impressive is that no one could tell the difference. She's also the only doctor to literally be fought over. During her final year of residency, several hospitals approach her with gift baskets, hoping to get her on their payrolls.
Teddy Altman
The Co-Head of Cardiothoracic Surgery has plenty of irers too. Redditor yellowchaitea notes, "she is a fantastic doctor in both cardio & trauma, can be calm under pressure, has a good bedside manner, and knows when to push her residents and when to take charge."
The best in their craft know how to on their knowledge to others. and the former Chief officer of MEDCOM proves how great a tutor she is during her time with Cristina. She's so good that Cristina opts to trade Owen for more time under Teddy. The cardio surgeon has had her own groundbreaking achievements too, including pioneering cell regenerative heart medicine.
Maggie Pierce
Maggie - the current Co-Head of Cardiothoracic Surgery - has done a lot too and her efforts haven't gone unnoticed. Siiyalater99 reminds everyone that "It’s been said over and over how much of a genius Maggie is... how she graduated years ahead and how she’s the youngest ever cardio chief and all her accomplishments."
One doesn't get to be cardio chief by being average and the fact that Maggie does so very early in her career says all there is to say about her awesomeness. Because of her unique abilities, Grey Sloan is forced to share her too. At the moment, she has privileges at both Pacific Northwest General Hospital and Seattle Presbyterian Hospital, making her the only surgeon entitled to step into the OR at all 3 of Seattle's major hospitals.
Owen Hunt
Owen begins his career as a military doctor before moving to Seattle. MissSharpee says the Head of Trauma is "the best under pressure and good at improvisation."
The improvisation part is mostly what Owen is known for, even once managing to use a ballpoint pen during surgery. His endurance is unmatched too as he once works for 3 days straight without rest. Owen is good at making sure others do a brilliant job too. Soon after taking over the Trauma department at Seattle Grace Hospital, he is able to transform it into a Level-One center.
Addison Forbes Montgomery
Addison is one of the few double board-certified OB/GYNs, specializing in maternal-fetal surgery. Oncer93 notes that "she's world-renowned, has great bedside manners, and only few can do what she does."
It's normal for patients to doubt a doctor's abilities and Addison always spares a few minutes to list her accomplishments to them. As such, viewers are never in doubt about what she can do. She is also part of the "I can do what others can't" category as she is one of only two surgeons in the world capable of separating fetal blood vessels and curing the twin-to-twin blood transfusion syndrome.
Izzie Stevens
Izzie gets a lot of flak because of the LVAD wire incident and her history as a model but she is generally competent. Redditor pacrat292 brings up the fact that she "drilled holes into a guy's head after not practicing medicine for 6 months and also opened a guy's chest bedside in her second week as an intern."
Drilling burr holes into a ferry accident's skull with an ordinary drill sure does place Izzie on the same improvisation levels as Owen. She gets a stamp of approval from Addison too, which means a lot. Moreover, Izzie is one of few doctors to have experience in various fields, having worked as an OB/GYN and cardio surgeon before settling for oncology.
Richard Webber
The Residency Program director is quite the experienced surgeon. Redditor betaich notes "Richard was several times on the shortlist for awards prior to the show" and that "he also taught Addison and Derek and a lot of the others."
As one of the Grey's Anatomy doctors with the best teaching skills, Richard should be commended for empowering some of the show's best doctors. His experience and tutelage aside, no one else can ever top his feast of performing surgery with his eyes closed. And it's all due to muscle memory. Having performed over 10,000 surgeries, he knows where every muscle in the body is.