St. Denis Medical Stars Share Hilariously Uncomfortable Hospital Experiences That Felt Straight Out Of A Sitcom: ‘Rough And Scary Places’

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Be warned: the following contains minor spoilers for the first episode of Season 2 of St. Denis Medical, which premiered on NBC and is available to stream on Peacock.

Typically, network TV saves its best comedies for later in the year, but 2025 is different. This fall, the new show St. Denis Medical is leading the charge, and it’s all about the lives of the doctors and nurses who work there. TopMob recently chatted with the show’s stars – Alison Tolman, Mekki Lepper, Kaliko Kauahi, Wendi McLendon-Covey, and Kahyun Kim – to mark the beginning of Season 2.

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Viewers can anticipate seeing characters grapple with relatable issues: Ron will face the difficulties of getting older and maintaining his self-respect, Joyce will struggle to manage her hospital while also indulging in unnecessary luxuries, and Keith will likely remain his usual self.

I often wondered if the actors had ever gone through experiences similar to those depicted within the world of ‘St. Denis.’ It turns out that awkward hospital visits are something many people can relate to. Alison Tolman perfectly captured this, noting that the show’s waiting room scenes felt very true to her own life experiences.

I’ve been to enough emergency rooms to know waiting rooms can be truly awful. They’re stressful and unpleasant places to be, and that’s what I always think of when I see anything resembling one.

Alison Tolman

Not that it’s just the waiting rooms that are a nightmare. Never that.

Mekki Leeper, who plays the kind and slightly clumsy nurse Matt, recently told a story about a frustrating hospital issue that could have easily been avoided. He described it like this:

Yes, I actually experienced a really unsettling situation when I had food poisoning and was hospitalized. There was this incredibly loud, constant beeping sound, and one nurse, who reminded me of someone named Matt, seemed really stressed and was pacing back and forth for a long time. I couldn’t see much because of a curtain near my bed, but I could hear him stop right beside me and flip a switch, which finally silenced the beeping. It felt like he could have fixed it immediately, and the whole thing just reminded me of Matt.

Mekki Leeper

It feels like a neighbor leaving their dog outside and then making it wait another 20 to 30 minutes before letting it back in, even though it’s barking, whining, and scratching to be let inside. It’s not really a problem for the hospital, but it’s still disturbing.

Okay, so Kahyun Kim had the weirdest doctor’s appointment ever! She went in feeling one way about getting some work done, but by the time she left, her whole perspective had totally flipped. She described it as a complete 180, and I’m dying to know what happened! Apparently, she explained it like this:

During my fourth year of school, I considered getting a nose job from what was considered the top plastic surgeon in Korea. I actually went to their clinic, but I decided against surgery because all the nurses looked identical. It was unsettling – they were all made to look the same by the lead doctor. That experience was a bit creepy, and ultimately, that’s why I didn’t go through with it. The only way to distinguish them was by their height.

Kahyun Kim

It’s satisfying to successfully develop a surgical technique that others can learn and repeat. However, simply being able to replicate a procedure isn’t necessarily the most impressive way to demonstrate expertise.

Wendi McClendon-Covey shared a story about an awkward experience not because she felt personally uncomfortable, but because of the unprofessional behavior of the person providing a service. As she explained:

I once had a really awkward experience at the doctor’s office. The phlebotomist kept complaining to me about her personal life – her boyfriend had taken her phone, and she just went on and on. I was already nervous about the needle, and I honestly felt like I was going to pass out. I kept wishing she’d just get the job done! It felt rude to interrupt, but it wasn’t very professional. It made me think about how people can pass nursing school even if they don’t get great grades, and still end up working as nurses – and that’s who I got.

Wendi McClendon-Covey

Just because something looks good doesn’t mean it’s valuable, and not everyone who wants to be a doctor is a medical genius. Despite this, life goes on. While the storylines in this NBC comedy might not always be completely realistic compared to other hospital dramas, awkward situations definitely happen in the medical world. You can be sure there’s always someone in every hospital – a bit of a know-it-all – who’s eager to share stories about both the job and themselves.

You can keep watching the funny and touching hospital stories of St. Denis Medical with new episodes airing Mondays at 8 p.m. Eastern on NBC. And remember to designate an emergency contact!

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2025-11-05 17:39