New Amsterdam (2018–…): Season 1, Episode 17 - Sanctuary - full transcript

I gotta get this hospital ready for

the worst storm that we've seen in

I don't know how many years.

If you pull me off, won't I die?

If we stay here, you definitely will.

Get me a gurney!

If people can't get to this hospital,

then we need to bring
this hospital to them.

Max, as your doctor,

I cannot let you traipse through a storm.

And I will take care of myself



because I love my doctor.

Honey, I'm sorry,

but it's never gonna work out
between you and Max.

We need to talk.

This thing between us...

Max.

Uh, we lost power.

Shouldn't the generator be coming on?

Any second.

What's happening?

Um, sorry folks.
It appears we lost power,

but the generator should
be kicking in shortly.

Is everyone all right?

My baby's cold. C4an I get a blanket?



Newborn?

My husband couldn't get here
for her birth,

and we've been discharged.

The insurance company
wouldn't let us stay.

It's okay. Here, just take my coat,

and I'll get you a blanket
as soon as possible.

- Is the heat coming back on?
- Yeah, shortly.

Come on in, guys.
Just head right over here.

We're gonna fix this.

- Max.
- Yeah?

The generator should have
kicked in by now.

The circulatory machines,
the ventilators...

Okay, just do a quick status run,

check all the wards,
and I'll meet you in the ED.

- No... should someone else...
- I'm fine.

You wanted to tell me something.

It can wait.

- Henry.
- Dr. Goodwin.

- How many on maintenance tonight?
- You're looking at him.

Why isn't the generator coming on?

I'm on my way to find out,
but it looks like

the entire lower Manhattan grid is down.

Every minute we're without power...

- No, I get it.
- Patients will die.

- Status?
- Improvising.

Call it out, April.

Mr. Ayers, blood pressure: 130/75.

Pupils sluggish to react.

We have someone on each of
the ventilator patients

working an AMBU bag, taking pulses,

visually monitoring stats and meds...

Uh, what do you need?

Besides power? More people.

Since the storm, we've been
working with a skeleton crew.

Thermal socks. We have to clean the feet.

Keep his clothes on for the time being.

No monitor. No suction.

No cautery.

But you still have me, right?

Oh, yeah, holding firm.

Hey, can we get a battery-powered fan?

Reynolds.

It's all good, Dr. Sharpe.

I'm, uh, holding Hugh's heart
together with my fingers,

but without power, we've got no
cardiopulmonary bypass...

No way to titrate anesthesia.

We can't operate without them.

Max is working on the generator.

All right.

How are you doing, sir?

Oh, you know... meh.

Can I get another micro-insertion kit?

On it.

Hey. How you doing in there, Burl?

Get me out of here.

- It's tight!
- Yeah.

Hey, guys, is there any way
to slide this out

while the power's off?

We're safer with him in the machine.

- Danny, come on.
- He's here 'cause

- he attacked a guard.
- No, he's not.

He's here because a guard
bashed his head in.

- In self-defense.
- Oh, give me a...

The guard is my friend.
Your patient went off.

Hey, hey, Burl... Burl, listen.

Take a few deep breaths for me,
okay, buddy?

- Deep breaths?
- We're all in this together.

All right? Burl?

- Iggy.
- Yeah.

It's midnight. Why wasn't
this scheduled for earlier?

We only bring the prisoners
at night, ma'am,

for everyone's safety.

Can you handle this?

Sure, we're all in this together.

Yeah.

Okay, Burl.

Get me out!

Oh, um,

- where's that sound coming from?
- Elevator?

Can you tell everyone to get to ED?
I'll be there in a minute.

- Hello?
- Helen?

Vijay?

Yes, I'm here with Dr. Hartman.

You know my name's Clint, right?

- Are you okay?
- Yes, we are fine.

You don't look fine.
Are you claustrophobic?

Hardly. It's been a very long day,

and I'm stuck in this
very small box with you.

Helen, why hasn't
the generator kicked in?

- We're working on it.
- Keep working on it.

What? Talk to me, Henry.

I mean, this thing took a big hit

during Hurricane Sandy.

A lot these parts, they should
have been traded out.

- And they weren't?
- It doesn't look like it.

I mean, this fuel oil pump is failed,

this main pipe that's still cracked...

So?

So, I could really use
some more light down here.

Wait. Wait.

I just remembered something.

I hope it's still here.

This... this could buy us some time.

- What is it?
- Emergency battery.

They got it after Sandy.

Is it enough to power the hospital?

No way, but it could
cover a floor for an hour.

Okay, we got a battery. That'll buy us

a little breathing room
while Henry keeps working.

Reynolds is literally
holding a man's heart

- together with his fingers.
- Yeah, I understand.

And we got a NICU full of babies

getting colder by the minute.

I can buy us a little juice
for one floor for one hour.

Okay, so ICU, ventilators, IV pumps?

- Yes.
- Yes?

What do you mean "yes"?

We need to pick one. We need to triage.

- Nope.
- Shouldn't we be evacuating?

- No.
- To where? How?

In this storm, we can't even
get across the street.

Yeah, it's true. She's right.

We're one of the only hospitals
with the, um...

I was gonna say "with
the lights still on," but...

We could move everybody
to the same floor.

- Yes.
- That's crazy.

Well, why? We're not at capacity.

- Uh...
- Look, it's Helen's idea.

But that's only because
you won't let me triage.

No triage. Look, Henry is
having difficulty seeing.

Would you grab a flashlight
and meet us down there?

Yeah, yes.

- Max.
- Huh?

- We cannot...
- We will.

Yo, hand me those soft-grip pliers.

Yeah, yeah, you got it.

Going with the soft-grip. Here you go.

So, are you gonna check
those rotors or what?

- Yeah, I'm doing it now.
- Yeah, cool.

Boom.

- I'm very impressed.
- Yeah, are you?

Well, that's what growing up
on a farm does for a man.

Teaches him to say "boom" a lot?

- Yeah.
- Hmm.

These rotors seem fine,

but the connections are damaged.

- Tweak the rotors.
- If I could just

get them to turn a little bit,
there might be enough power

left inside the system f...

Whoa!

Henry!

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

One, two, three...

Nothing.

Come on, Henry. Stay with me.

Stay with me, come on. Three... four...

- Come on, Henry.
- Five, six...

Seven, either, nine, ten.

No, nothing. Let me get an AED...

No, no, no. There's no time.

Here we go.

- All right.
- Yeah?

Oh, come on, Henry. Going again.

Yeah?

Nothing. No, Max, that's enough.

No, one more try, one more try.

Come on, Henry.

NICU and ICU are priority zones.

But they're different floors.

We could move the babies to the ICU.

And everyone else?

Yeah, move everyone
to the ICU, all the patients.

Keep the NICU separated,

and bring the people up from the lobby.

We can turn off all nonessentials,

convert IV drips
to subcutaneous injections.

What about Reynolds' man in the OR?

- I can help with that.
- Go ahead.

Wha... what happened?

He was electrocuted, v-fib arrest

with ROSC after pericardial thump.

He should be okay, but we need to monitor

his rhythm and treat
the burns on his hands.

All right, okay. So, no generator?

Not unless you can fix it.

Guys, I may know someone who can.

Who?

Well, he's, um...

He's currently stuck in an MRI machine.

- The Rikers patient?
- Yes, the Rikers patient.

But he used to work for DWP,
he's smart...

- Okay, great.
- Yeah.

Full disclosure, though,

he sort of murdered his coworker.

- Oh, my God.
- Right.

But it wasn't premeditated.
He's not a psychopath.

He just has behavioral issues.

A rather big one, don't you think?

Yeah.

I'll take full responsibility.

Plus, there's a guard there, so...

it's our best shot.

Keep this tray in place.

His blood pressure's dropped
down to 90/64.

- Hang in there, Hugh.
- Is that a fence joke?

Just keep talking.

Make a list of all the things
you're gonna do

with your husband when you get home.

Scrub the baseboards, fold the towels...

though, Eric always says
three folds is overkill.

Eric can have an opinion on three folds

when he starts doing laundry.

Good point.

You have to help me remember
to tell him all this

if I make it.

You're gonna make it.

BP's dropped to 82/40.

We need to do something now.

Hypothermic coma.

Lower his body temp to near freezing

and slow his metabolism.

Wasn't I freezing outside?

No, no, no, this will be controlled.

I'm afraid it's our only option.

Respectfully disagree.

You bring me some power?

No, but we can do his surgery right now.

With what?

We have all the equipment we need here.

I worked in far worse
conditions in Afghanistan.

Dr. Candelario,
this is my patient, my OR.

Your OR has decent lighting
and electricity.

We can save this man,

but I'm gonna need you to let go.

Literally.

Go ahead with the IV, it'll help BP...

We'll have battery power at any moment.

It's all right.
We're all gonna get there.

Will you just take your time, please?

And don't panic!

Will you hurry up?

Take your time.

Ugh, I just wanna get out of here.

What's going on here?

Do you know what's going on here?

Calm down, okay?

Everyone...

Hey! Hey!

We have light. Heat will follow.

I know that the circumstances
are less than ideal, but we...

Hey, there's something wrong
with this woman.

Help that lady. Help that lady.

It's a baby.

Agnes.

I'll hold her.

She was complaining of
a headache earlier.

Want me to get Dr. Kapoor?

He's stuck in an elevator...
With Hartman.

You're gonna have to take care of her.

It's all right, Dr. Sharpe. I've got her.

You can write .6 mg per minute.

Confirming he said he was 162 pounds?

Confirmed.

I've never managed anesthesia levels

without a monitor before.

Hold my beer.

That's okay.

Though neither of you
learned these techniques

in medical school, I can assure you

they've been practiced for ages.

That said, you may wanna stand back.

Hello, Agnes.

Hi, Dr. Kapoor. Are you all right?

I'm fine. Better now.

- I'm here too.
- Yes, he's here too.

I need your help.

Mine?

Both of you, I think.

What's the matter with her?

She gave birth yesterday,
complained of a headache,

then collapsed when we moved
everyone up to the ICU.

Have you assessed her reflexes?

She has a motor deficit
of the left upper extremity

and left lower extremity, sensory intact.

It sounds like an amniotic stroke.

What do I do?

Nothing. There's nothing you can do,

not until the power comes back on.

Get a 60cc syringe,

a 7 French catheter with
a metal tip, and a magnet.

- A magnet?
- Yes. Hurry.

Okay, you're kidding, right?

The woman will die
if we don't try to help her.

Yeah, but we don't have the tools.

You don't have the tools.

Where are your maintenance people?

All but one were sent home,
and he's hurt.

Huh.

Hurt trying to do the job
you want me to do?

Afraid so.

- Is this your idea?
- Not remotely.

I'm gonna need a set of plans.

For the generator?

For the hospital.

Not exactly state of the art.

- Yeah.
- What exactly do you need the plans for?

He doesn't.

Hey, nothing gets fixed in a vacuum.

An old building...

Could be a wiring issue.

Your man get fried on the pump?

Honestly, I'm not sure.

If you want me to, I can fix it.

I'm gonna need a set of plans, and um...

And a reduced sentence.

Burl...

Pardon from the governor works too.

Okay, we're done here. Let's go.

Hey, hey, hey. Hold on. Well,
how much longer do you think

the guards and the prisoners
are gonna play nice

- if they're freezing to death?
- Look, Burl,

I'm not in a position to negotiate terms.

Well, then I guess people are gonna die.

Hold on. No, but you
don't want that, Burl.

None of us want to lose anyone.

Now, this man, whom I know
to be a good man,

he doesn't trust you.

But that's a familiar scenario, isn't it?

You could be a hero tonight, Burl.

I'm trusting you
to come through for everyone.

Has anyone ever said that to you before?

Has anyone ever give you
that opportunity?

Burl, you said
you wanted to change, right?

This is it. This is where it starts.

Okay.

I'll help.

But I need those plans...

- And these off.
- No way.

Can't work tied up.

Okay, there's a set of plans
in my office closet.

Okay.

He's playing you, man.

Maybe, but tonight's
not gonna end well for anyone

if he can't get
this thing fixed, so Reyes,

please remove his restraints.

Right ventricle's exposed.

Lung sounds bilateral.

In a traditional surgery, this is where

I'd stop the heart from beating.

- But we can't do that.
- No, we can't.

But you've been holding
the heart for a long time.

Perhaps you've got
the rhythm down, right?

You want me to time each suture

to the relaxation phase.

Exactly.

Time to let go.

Um...

Can you slow him down a bit more, Alicia?

- Give me time to sew?
- I'll try.

Kat, I'm gonna need a 3.0 Prolene

on a needle driver.

You're doing great.

It's not much different, actually.

I mean, it is, but I never realized

how much I relied on machines.

Doing it old-school like this

makes me think I might be

a better surgeon than I thought.

- Oh, no.
- Alicia?

What...

What are you...?

Alicia...

Alicia, get him back under!

Uh, sir?

Sir, we need to be able
to get through here.

She's hungry. I tried giving the formula,

but she wouldn't take it.

She needs her mother.

- His heart's racing!
- I'm trying.

We need blood, O-neg.

There isn't any. We exhausted
the supply earlier tonight.

Then find some. We're not losing him.

Sorry, can I have everyone's attention?

We have a medical emergency
in one of our operating rooms,

and we need, um, uh,
type O-negative blood.

So, the process is quick
and relatively painless,

and, uh... you can help save a life.

So if anybody knows that
they are O-negative already,

go ahead and, um, uh, raise your hand,

and we'll, um...

Uh...

Sorry, guys, but I need your attention

just for a minute.

Would everybody look down?

Just look directly below you.

Um...

If you had X-ray vision,
what you would see

is our second-floor OR.

You would see a man
on the table in the dark.

His name is Hugh.

Hugh is having
open-heart surgery right now,

in a no-electricity setting,
and he is running out of blood.

So however difficult
you're finding today,

I promise you, Hugh's day
is going a lot worse.

So, here, I will go first.

We're in the middle of a night that

we're gonna remember
for the rest of our lives.

We're gonna tell the story of how,

in the worst blizzard
New York's seen in a century,

we were trapped in a hospital.

And it can be a story about
how tired and hungry

and cold and angry we were.

It can be a story about how we couldn't

stop fighting with each other

or how Dr. Sharpe kept yelling at you.

Or it can be a story of how,

when every instinct told us
to be at our worst,

we were at our best.

And if we do that,

then maybe Hugh gets to stick around

and tell that story too.

So... would anyone like a blood test?

Yeah, I will.

- Yes? Thank you.
- Yeah, me too.

Yeah? Great. Thanks.

You just see Casey right here,

and, um, and he'll help you out.

Thank you. Thank you.

Nice work, except for the yelling part.

You need to sit down.

- Max, as your doctor...
- I'm fine.

- You're not well.
- Thank God for adrenaline.

Dr. Sharpe, the baby...

The introducer's in place.

Good. Now thread
the catheter into her arteries.

Done, now what?

Oh!

Dr. Kapoor?

What's wrong with you?

Oh, God, my foot is cramping.

I spent too long in the snow.

I need you to apply acupressure

to K-6 point, please.

On your foot?

Dr. Hartman,
as you often enjoy pointing out

that I'm not a young man,

I cannot contort myself to do this.

So that's why you treat me like garbage?

Because I made a couple
of jokes about your age?

More than a couple.

Okay, I got into neurosurgery
so I didn't have to touch

my patients' bodies,
much less their feet.

Dr. Kapoor?

If you don't help me,
I cannot help Agnes.

All you have to do is to apply
pressure between

the second and third metatarsal,

one third the way between
the MTP joint and calcaneus.

Please.

Oh, God. Yeah.

Open the laces, please.

Yeah, I have shoes.

- Oh!
- Just calm down.

Without the socks, please.

There.

Gently.

Oh. Ah.

- Put some pressure, no?
- Oh, my God.

I'm ready with the magnet.

Agnes, the baby needs to be fed.

- Station her here.
- But she's unconscious.

Well, I don't think we have a choice.

- When was this place built?
- Uh, 1766.

You know, there used to be

an old swimming pool in the basement?

Uh... no, I didn't. No, I did not.

Neat.

Ah!

- Damn it!
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait!

Hold on. Burl?

Burl, are you all right?

What?

- Uh, you screamed.
- Yeah. I got frustrated.

Okay.

Anyway, I think I know what to do.

I'm gonna need welding equipment.

Yeah, we can get that for you.

It shouldn't take me
more than ten minutes.

All right.

Problem is, it's gonna
suck up a lot of your juice.

You said you had a portion
of the hospital

running on a battery?

The ICU.

I'm gonna need that power.

If you can't fix it...

Then we'd all be done.

No more juice for anybody.

It's your call.

How can you put your faith in this man,

I know that I did not see half
a violent man?

Well, his violence
was triggered by abuse at work

and years of beatings as a kid.

The guard will be with him at all times.

He gets the power he needs,
we get New Amsterdam

back on its feet.

- It's the only way.
- No, it is not the only way.

The latest emergency bulletin said

the storm should break around 5:00 a.m.

With the wind down, we could
get a helicopter on the roof

and a new generator.

Yeah, but there's no guarantee
the storm's gonna break.

As opposed to the iron certainty

of us trusting a homicidal electrician?

In a half an hour, the battery
will be dead regardless.

We may not be able to keep

our most critical patients
alive until 5:00 a.m.

Right, so your prisoner uses up all

of our existing power and fails,

and that's a half an hour
less time that we have to try.

Not to mention all the people
that we'd be putting

back into the cold.

Just think about the greater good, Max.

Yeah, I am, Helen. Okay?

I'm not signing off on any plan
that requires me to triage,

to give up on anyone.

Well, then you are risking
everyone's life.

I'm trying to save everyone's life.

That is not possible.

Dr. Sharpe, please inform
everyone that in a few moments

the power will go down for
approximately ten minutes.

After which, God willing,

New Amsterdam will be fully back online.

Okay?

What are you...?

Kira...

What happened?

My arm.

You've had a mild stroke.

And my baby? How did she...?

She's fine.

Agnes, it's time to place the magnet

on the right side of
the patient's temple.

Okay.

And surely your foot is better by now.

Of course, but you seem to be
happy holding it.

Okay, Agnes, now when you feel
the tug on the catheter,

you will know when
it's in the right place.

I feel it. It's working.

Good. You have Hartman and
his youthful fingers to thank.

Okay, this is all the welding gear

that we could find.

Yeah, we got this thing
and whatever this thing is.

I thought you grew up on a farm.

Yeah, I can make that work.

How can we help?

Run the cables up to the battery.

Okay. Yeah, I'm on it.

And then you should all
go out in the hall

before I light this.

So you don't, you know, blow up.

- Thank you.
- No, thank you.

The minute you're done
with this little game,

I'm dragging your ass off
to a cold, dark corner.

- You understand me?
- Reyes.

All right, everybody, here we go.

Is he done?

Yeah, I guess.

Hey, Burl, you okay in there, buddy?

Burl?

Burl, hey, buddy. How you doing?

- Damn it.
- I told you.

Max. Max!

Where you going?

- Where's Henry?
- In the ICU.

Where's his notebook? He had a notebook.

He was making notes. We can wake him up,

he can look at them with fresh eyes,

and then we can come up with
a different plan,

a better plan, and we can fix it.

Okay?

'Cause there's still time to fix...

- Damn it!
- Max.

Stop.

It's nearly 2:00 a.m.

Hopefully the storm breaks at five.

And that gives us at least three hours

to disburse extremely limited resources,

but you and I need
to decide which patients

are gonna get them and which ones aren't.

That's not who we are.

No, but it's where we are.

- Helen...
- Max.

We have no power, no blood,
it's freezing...

That doesn't mean someone has to die.

But someone will.

That's just a fact now.

Your job is no longer to save everyone.

It's to try and minimize the damage.

Do you understand that?

I thought it would work.

I just couldn't see a scenario
where it didn't.

I know.

But now we have to choose...

who to let go.

I can't...

Choose.

I won't.

Then I will.

The city's still out.

That means the generator...

We got power. Hook him up.

Assess the ABCs.

Continue monitoring manually until...

Come on, man. You just
have to hang on a bit longer.

Okay, the catheter's all the way in.

End of the line.

Good, Agnes.
You're doing a wonderful job.

All you have to do now
is to attach the syringe and...

Dr. Kapoor?

Agnes?

And what?

I've got this.

Mm-hmm.

Where's the blood?

Kira, try to move your left arm for me.

Thank you.

Thank you.

Hey. Hey.

How'd you get us the juice?

I didn't.

Okay.

Hey.

- Did you fix the...
- Welding wasn't gonna fix that.

I couldn't tell you that or Reyes
would have dragged me off.

I just figured if this place
had an old swimming pool,

it might have a fuel pump
system I could switch out.

It did.

What do you want?

Anything. I'll make it happen.

I wanna get better.

Oh, and the baseboards...

Never another speck of dust.

Did you tell him about
the towels? Three folds?

- How do you know about that?
- You wanted to tell him.

And I'm gonna fold all the towels

just the way you don't like them.

I was brilliant last night, wasn't I?

Oh, yes, exceptional

with all your years in the field.

Thank you.

You were bloody magnificent last night.

I just said "bloody."

I could think of a better
expression under the circumstances.

It's a UK thing.

- So I've heard.
- Mm-hmm.

Really.

There's no way I would have
gotten through it without you.

We make a good team.

That's what I wanted to
speak to you about, actually...

before the power went out.

This thing where I am
your deputy and your doctor...

and your confidante and your friend...

- That is a lot.
- Yeah, it is.

And it's not working.

All last night, we needed
to choose who to save,

and every time,
you chose all of the above.

- Yeah, I...
- No, that's not a criticism.

I'm glad you did. You saved everyone.

- We saved everyone.
- Yes.

It worked out, but sometimes it doesn't.

Sometimes you have to choose...

And you couldn't.

You just said it all worked out, and...

I don't see what me not triaging patients

has to do with...

with us.

It's what you do with
your cancer as well.

You wanna stay healthy for your family,

but you want to stay in charge
of the hospital.

You want the chemo,
the strongest that we have,

just not any of the side
effects that come with it.

From the day this began,

from the day we met,

you have refused to choose.

I'm not refusing, it's not that easy.

Look, Helen, all I want is...

Max.

You want everything.

It's who you are.

You are all of the above.

And then you come to me
with these demands,

these inspiring...

completely impossible demands,

and I don't know who I'm supposed to be.

You're supposed to be you.

I've tried.

I have tried to be all of the above.

I can't.

I can't be your friend and your doctor

and your deputy, so I have to choose.

I have to triage us.

I'm gonna ask Dr. Stauton

- to take over for me.
- No.

She's an exceptional oncologist.

- No, no! You don't...
- She'll be your new doctor, Max.

She'll handle your care,
effective immediately.

But what if I want you?

Well, I'm afraid
that's no longer an option.

Because we all want you.