If you’re looking for a new show to add to your rotation, we’ve got you covered. This list contains a little bit of everything including long-running, record-breaking medical dramas, a hard-hitting mini-series about the opioid crisis, historical fiction based on real events, and first responders risking it all. No matter what you’re in the mood for, this list has you covered.
Here are our Top 20 Medical TV Shows, ranked in order according to their IMDB Rating.
20. Chicago Med
IMDB Rating: 7.6
TV-14 | 2015 – Present
About: Chicago Med follows the doctors and nurses in the Emergency Department of Gaffney Chicago Medical Center (inspired by real-life Rush University Medical Center, where several scenes were filmed) as they save the lives of their patients, sometimes in unconventional and surprising ways, and navigate their interpersonal relationships.
Chicago Med is part of a franchise with Chicago P.D. and Chicago Fire, which are all centered on the lives and work of the first responders in Chicago. Keep your eye out for crossovers – there are a few!
19. Grey’s Anatomy
IMDB Rating: 7.6
TV-14 | 2005 – Present
About: Grey’s Anatomy follows the personal lives and work lives of a team of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they problem-solve the issues that arise with their patients and with each other.
The show gets its name from Dr. Meredith Grey, an original cast member played by Ellen Pompeo. In 2019, Grey’s Anatomy overtook ER as the longest-running American primetime medical drama series.
18. Nip/Tuck
IMDB Rating: 7.7
TV-MA | 2003 – 2010
About: Nip/Tuck is set in a cutting-edge, but controversial, plastic surgery center. This show dips its toes into several genres, including crime drama, psychological thriller, satire, and camp as it follows Dr. Sean McNamara and Dr. Christian Troy – one a playboy and one a family man – who are longtime friends and co-founders of their Miami-based practice.
This show has a Mature Audience rating because it frequently has strong themes including rape and drugs, and the surgery scenes can be pretty graphic.
17. Nurse Jackie
IMDB Rating: 7.8
TV-MA | 2009 – 2015
About: Nurse Jackie was a popular show that ran for 7 seasons, following the life of an nurse as she tries to find a balance between her drug addiction, the demands of her job in a frenzied New York City hospital, and the drama of her personal life.
Nurse Jackie is an incredibly complex and well-written character. She’s smart, loved by her patients, and great at her job, but will also do anything it takes to keep the pills coming – including blowing up her personal life. She saves lives on a regular basis, but will she be able to save herself?
16. The Resident
IMDB Rating: 7.8
TV-14 | 2018 – 2023
About: The doctors and nurses at Chastain Memorial Park Hospital work tirelessly to solve complex medical cases, doing whatever it takes to save their patients. The Resident follows an idealistic young doctor, who is quickly faced with the realities of our modern healthcare system.
The Resident doesn’t back down from showing the real-life bureaucratic issues that can arise within the healthcare industry, which can be just as maddening at times as the unsolved medical mysteries they tackle.
15. 9-1-1
IMDB Rating: 7.8
TV-14 | 2018 – Present
About: 9-1-1 follows the lives of police, paramedics, firefighters, and dispatchers who face frightening, gripping, and shocking situations in order to answer the call for help. Because this show follows emergency responders rather than doctors and nurses, it gives viewers a look at what happens before patients make it to the hospital, a timeframe other medical dramas tend to leave out.
The first responders of 9-1-1 must work to juggle their personal lives and the death-defying dangers of their jobs. Keeping a healthy balance isn’t easy.
14. A Young Doctor’s Notebook
IMDB Rating: 7.8
TV-MA | 2012 – 2013
About: Based on a book with the same title by Mikhail Bulgakov, A Young Doctor’s Notebook is a British dark comedy set in early twentieth-century Russia. It tells the story of a young Russian doctor from Moscow who is sent to work in a small village hospital in the middle of nowhere. This series is based on a collection of short stories inspired by Bulgakov’s personal experiences as a newly graduated doctor.
This series is set in the years 1917-1918 during the Russian Revolution and the Russian Civil War. The story follows the young doctor as he contends with difficult patients, personal relationships with his staff, and the political conflicts of his time.
13. ER
IMDB Rating: 7.9
TV-14 | 1994 – 2009
About: One of the most widely-celebrated medical shows on American television, ER follows the inner workings of a busy Emergency Room and its staff. ER received 124 Emmy nominations and won 23 Primetime Emmy awards, among many other honors. ER gets the balance just right – medical mysteries, heart-pounding drama, and personal relationships that grow, change, or fall apart.
Viewers loved the characters, the writing, and the attention to detail and accuracy that went into the creation of ER, and it translated to incredible ratings and set a record for the longest-running medical drama (until it was unseated by Grey’s Anatomy in 2019).
12. Transplant
IMDB Rating: 7.9
TV-14 | 2020 – Present
About: Transplant tells the story of an ER doctor Bashir Hamed, a Syrian Civil War refugee that fled his war-torn country and came to Canada. It follows his story as he tries to resume his career, but faces numerous obstacles.
He has to redo his medical training from the ground up, and manages to land a residency at York Memorial Hospital in Toronto. But things don’t necessarily get easier from there – his life experiences and training are different, making it hard for him to fit in with his new colleagues. Will this transplant make it in a new place? Only time will tell.
11. New Amsterdam
IMDB Rating: 8.0
TV-14 | 2018 – 2023
About: Max Goodwin becomes the medical director of one of the country’s oldest public hospitals. His ideas on reform, equity, and bureaucracy shake up the hospital from top to bottom, and not everybody likes what he’s trying to do.
New Amsterdam follows Max as he tries to tackle all that’s wrong with the American healthcare system, breaking rules and stepping on toes in order to get his patients the care they deserve, all while dealing with life-altering events in his personal life.
10. St. Elsewhere
IMDB Rating: 8.0
TV-PG | 1982 – 1988
About: This dramatic series follows life at St. Eligius Hospital, an old and respected teaching hospital in Boston. Each year new residents would join the staff and learn to deal with the ins and outs of life at St. Eligius Hospital.
Viewers loved this show for its balance. St. Elsewhere gave viewers a more “real” view of humanity in the medical industry – doctors make mistakes, patients don’t always make it, and everyone’s learning how to cope with their circumstances and make a difference in the best way they can.
9. The Good Doctor
IMDB Rating: 8.0
TV-14 | 2017 – Present
About: The Good Doctor features Dr. Shaun Murphy, a brilliant aspiring surgeon with autism and Savant syndrome. He gets recruited to the surgical unit at a prestigious hospital, and the learning curve for Dr. Murphy is just as steep as it is for his fellow residents and attendings, who all have to take a harder look at their skepticism and preconceptions about what it means to be a good doctor.
Dr. Murphy is an excellent diagnostician, but he has a difficult history and struggles to personally connect with people. The ever-present questions hang in the air – Will his genius be enough? Should he adapt, or should we? This show tackles biases and medical mysteries flawlessly side by side. It’s a must-watch.
8. M*A*S*H
IMDB Rating: 8.4
TV-PG | 1972 – 1983
About: M*A*S*H – short for Mobile Army Surgical Hospital, is a comedy-drama based set in an American mobile military hospital during the Korean War. It follows the nurses and doctors of the 4077th MASH, many of whom were drafted and don’t want to be there, as they tirelessly treat an endless stream of injured soldiers and civilians.
The show ranges widely in tone. Some episodes focus on the hilarious antics of the 4077th’s denizens, while others are heavy-hitters showing the true price of war. M*A*S*H ran for more than three times as long as the actual Korean War. You’ll fall in love with the characters (or at least most of them – we’re looking at you Frank), and cheer them on as they try to make sense of a world that’s been turned on its head by war.
7. Scrubs
IMDB Rating: 8.4
TV-14 | 2001-2010
About: Set in California, Scrubs follows John “JD” Dorian as he learns about life, medicine, and friendship at Sacred Heart Hospital, a teaching hospital. He must contend with personal and professional drama with his fellow doctors and an attending physician that is both brilliant and arrogant.
As with many sitcoms of this era, some parts haven’t aged well, with jokes about sexism and homophobia sprinkled in small doses throughout. Despite this, Scrubs was widely popular with viewers during its 9-year run, and its loveable cast and the show’s dedication to medical accuracy make Scrubs very rewatchable.
6. Doc Martin
IMDB Rating: 8.4
TV-14 | 2004 – 2022
About: This British medical comedy drama follows Doctor Martin Ellingham, who moves from London to the countryside in Cornwall, near where he grew up. It becomes clear early on that Martin is no ordinary doctor – always in a suit, regularly grumpy, and rumor has it that he left his job in London under odd circumstances.
Doc Martin is brilliant, but struggles socially, which can often create problems with the locals as he sets himself to be the area’s general practitioner. Challenges abound as Martin’s terrible bedside manner and other eccentricities muddle up things in both his professional and personal life. This engaging show is a mix of beautiful countryside, funny and feel-good moments, and people butting heads.
5. Bodies
IMDB Rating: 8.4
2004 – 2006
About: This award-winning series only aired for two seasons, but it was enough to be ranked 20th on The Guardian’s list of “Top 50 Television Dramas of All Time” in 2010.
Bodies follows a young registrar Rob Lake who takes a job at a gynecological office under Dr. Roger Hurley. Lake soon begins to wonder if this job was too good to be true, as he becomes apprehensive about his boss’s methods. Bodies is not for young viewers – it has heavy themes, nudity, and graphic surgery scenes.
4. The Knick
IMDB Rating: 8.5
TV-MA | 2014 – 2015
About: The Knick is a period medical drama set in the early part of the twentieth century in New York. It follows the staff of Knickerbocker Hospital as they do their best to keep the hospital running amidst personal conflicts, funding issues, racial tensions, dated medical techniques, and experimental new techniques that are often misunderstood.
The leader of the surgery staff, Dr. John Thackery, must balance his drug addictions with his thirst for knowledge and discovery and his reputation. Dr. Algernon Edwards, a Harvard-educated black doctor, must fight for basic respect from his peers, despite being more qualified than most. Through it all, the hospital’s staff does what they can to keep the lights on so that they can continue to save lives and help their community.
3. Call the Midwife
IMDB Rating: 8.6
TV-PG | 2012 – Present
About: Inspired by a series of memoirs written by Jennifer Worth, Call the Midwife chronicles the lives of a group of midwives and the sisters of Nonnatus House, who live and work together to help the women of the East End bring their babies into the world in 1950s and 1960s London.
The series starts with a 22-year-old Jenny, who leaves her home to become a midwife, and is surprised to learn that she will be living in a convent and serving people living in the harsh London slums. The midwives must contend with misinformation and harsh living conditions while building trust with the people they serve. In her time at Nonnatus House, Jenny discovers the beauty and bravery of the women in her new neighborhood, and develops a deep bond with the sisters, her fellow midwives, and the community of the East End through her service.
2. Dopesick
IMDB Rating: 8.6
TV-MA | 2021 Miniseries
About: Coming in at number 2 on this list is Dopesick, a miniseries that takes a hard look at the opioid crisis in America. From the board room at Purdue Pharma to the DEA to the Americans who suffered, it paints a picture of how one company’s greed triggered a horrific drug epidemic that still affects millions of Americans.
Accuracy was incredibly important to the producers of this series. They did extensive research and conducted interviews with people with opioid abuse disorder. While some of the characters on the show are fictional, they are based on the stories of several real-life people affected by the opioid crisis.
1. House
IMDB Rating: 8.7
TV-14 | 2004 – 2012
About: This widely popular show comes in at #1 on our list (and many others) – and for good reason. House follows the life of Dr. Gregory House, a gruff, rude, pill-popping doctor who is equal parts witty and arrogant. His brilliance keeps him on staff, and he and his team take on medical mysteries that no other doctors have been able to solve.
House’s lack of social graces lands him in hot water repeatedly over the course of the series, and he’s not exactly loved by the people he works with, but the patients he treats get answers. He must balance his giant ego with his addiction, his intellect, his work, and his personal life… and at least one or more of them is usually on the rocks at any given moment. This show ran for 8 seasons and even 11 years later is still ranked in the top 100 of IMDB’s Top Rated TV Shows. If you haven’t seen it yet – what are you waiting for?
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All ratings and dates were accurate as of May 2023.
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