HBO Max's 'The Pitt' aims to be the most accurate representation of medicine on TV by using real doctors as consultants.

HBO Max's 'The Pitt' has found success with an old-school, broadcast-TV production model that harkens back to weekly dramas that mostly disappeared during the streaming era.

Watch these Canadian doctors critique medical accuracy on television shows

Drs. Paul Zalzal and Brad Weening are orthopedic surgeons and members of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. In this episode, they discuss which television shows they think are the most medically accurate. "Grey's Anatomy" did not fare well in their review.

Learn how Hollywood tries to get mental health portrayals right

"Entertainment is always the first priority," the director of medical research for "Grey's Anatomy" and "Private Practice" explained in this Newsweek article. But, medical consultants and dedicated groups like the University of Southern California's Hollywood, Health, and Society program, can help inform shows' characters, actions, and sensitivities on subjects like mental illness.

See this ranking of the top 10 medical shows on television

The Hollywood Reporter created this 2025 ranking of 10 television shows from around the world that focus on medicine. Candidates included "Grey's Anatomy," "The Pitt," "New Amsterdam," "ER," and more. The publication warns that its ranking is a living document that may change with time—and that its explanations include show spoilers.

USA Television Network fictional series Royal Pains spotlights concierge medicine

This fictional television series, that aired from 2009-16, chronicles the adventures of a doctor who transitioned into offering concierge medicine for a big-spender clientele. As a private physician-for-hire he is on call to provide care 24/7.

Watch these fact checks of medical missteps in the show 'Grey's Anatomy'

This roughly 10-minute video seeks to highlight both medical and filming errors in the popular medical television show "Grey's Anatomy." Inaccurate medical moments in the show include mistakes in surgical procedures, wearing jewelry during surgery, and confusing cirrhosis—which is a scarring condition that damages the liver—with psoriasis, a skin condition.

'Dr. Death' (4 Seasons)

Taking a unique angle on the true crime genre, this series explores medical professionals whose lust for fame and success stops at nothing—even others’ lives. Each season explores a different doctor and the systems that enabled them. Begin with the season one and the story of Christopher Duntsch, accused of maiming or killing several patients, including leaving one quadriplegic and another brain-dead.

David Simon on writing for TV

Few people have done more to define HBO—and American television—than David Simon, creator and writer for “The Wire,” “Treme,” “Show Me a Hero,” and other shows. In this interview, Simon explains how he approaches a script and what he believes TV writers should aim to do beyond entertainment.

HBO is known for its adventurous original series

The premium network is known for groundbreaking shows like “The Sopranos,” “Sex and the City,” “The Wire,” “Game of Thrones,” Succession,” and more. Unlike traditional broadcast television, HBO shows were not bound by strict time limits, advertising, or FCC regulations, allowing for more creative freedom.

HBO's success inspired Showtime, AMC, Netflix, and more

HBO’s success in the early 21st century bred plenty of imitators, who were now more willing to embrace darker, more challenging series like “Weeds,” “Mad Men,” “Breaking Bad,” and “House of Cards.”

Breaking down what makes HBO different

The network took an early gamble on longer episodes and more complicated narratives than a standard television drama. That paid off and, in the process, created what we now consider "prestige TV."

HBO's business model is based on driving the cultural conversation

HBO CEO Casey Bloys steered the network’s programming to critical acclaim and cultural relevance with hits like “Succession” and “The White Lotus.” Bloys discusses how the network’s programming evolved as it shifted toward streaming—and how the success of shows like “House of the Dragon” informs HBO’s future.

The most critically acclaimed HBO shows

HBO has released a long list of classic TV shows which have come to define the medium. This Rotten Tomatoes chart ranks HBO’s best series based on their aggregated critics’ scores, with classics like “The Sopranos” and “The Wire” joining newer hits like “Succession” and “Barry.” Check it out here.

Medical professionals have experimented with using mixed reality headsets

Devices like the Apple Vision Pro have helped doctors develop surgical plans for hip and knee replacements using software that provides 3D models and other tools. Virtual screens displayed by mixed reality devices can provide information related to surgical progress, a patient's vitals, and more.

'The Wire' was written by TV outsiders

The landmark HBO crime drama was created and written largely by former Baltimore police reporter David Simon and his creative partner, Ed Burns, a Baltimore police officer and school teacher. Those experiences—and the writers’ relative inexperience with television—led to a show uniquely informed by reality.

Read what it's like working in emergency medicine

A board-certified emergency medicine physician working in the Bronx writes about what her workweeks look like and what attracted her to this fast-paced medical specialty, including being able to help suffering patients quickly, treating a wide range of ailments, and tending to disadvantaged communities.

HBO is credited for the rise of ‘prestige television’

“Prestige television,” sometimes referred to as “the golden age of TV,” is a critical term for serious, darker, auteur-driven television from the late 1990s through the 2020s. HBO shows are often cited as examples of this style, with “The Sopranos” evolving the style and developing a model for the form.

A 'holoported' medical team has been beamed into the International Space Station

In 2021, using the Microsoft HoloLens Kinect camera and custom Aexa Aerospace software, NASA's flight surgeon led a team of hologram doctors on a pioneering visit to the space station, marking a significant advancement in communication and telemedicine technologies that will be crucial for future deep-space missions.

Critics of concierge medicine argue it's worsening physician shortages and expanding inequity

Some research suggests that the average wait time for a primary care visit in major US cities can be 21 days. Subscription-based medical practices offer faster in-person and virtual appointment options, but the price barrier to this type of service may worsen inequity in healthcare access. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

Doctors are prescribing social activities—and seeing good results

Physicians, especially in the UK, are asking patients what they enjoy and then prescribing a consistent regimen of doing that type of activity to improve fitness and overall health, including community exercise classes, volunteering, and spending time in nature. This approach may provide better incentives to stick with an activity.

Actors on 'All the President's Men' immersed themselves in real-world reporting

Dustin Hoffman and Robert Redford spent months shadowing the real Carl Bernstein and Bob Woodward—working at The Washington Post, living with Bernstein's family, and studying their mannerisms—to bring authentic nuance to their portrayals of Watergate's investigative journalists.

Doctors report wanting more time to plan, provide care for patients

Many physicians experience aspects of burnout, and concierge medicine provides a slower, more relational approach to medicine, including consistent follow-up care for a smaller pool of patients. A concierge medicine clinician may talk with each patient frequently, perhaps every few weeks, instead of just once a year.

Roughly 45% of clinicians in 2023 reported at least one symptom of burnout

With that kind of statistic as a backdrop, proponents of concierge medicine practices argue that concierge services could help keep doctors in medicine and thus help to address physician shortages.

See how DOJ prosecutors took down a pharmaceutical company's executives over the opioid crisis

This FRONTLINE documentary follows federal prosecutors as they used anti-racketeering laws to convict executives at Insys Therapeutics, a pharmaceutical company that bribed doctors to overprescribe a fentanyl painkiller.

Primary care doctors are converting into membership-based concierge practices

Subscription-based practices sometimes don't accept insurance and they also require annual membership fees which can add up to thousands of dollars per year. In return, patients are promised more personalized care and round-the-clock access to medical providers. As doctors transition to concierge care, this retainer-based medicine model is forcing people to choose between searching for new primary care providers or paying hefty fees.

The potential promises and pitfalls of AI in medicine

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being integrated into healthcare, offering the potential to aid in diagnoses, answer patient queries, and streamline administrative processes. In a recent PBS interview, Dr. Isaac Kohane, editor-in-chief of the New England Journal of Medicine AI and chair of Harvard’s department of biomedical informatics, discusses the current state and future of AI in medicine.

The best HBO shows of all time

In addition to establishing the blueprint for TV in the 21st century, HBO has also been responsible for excellent comedies ("Veep"), talk shows ("Last Week Tonight with John Oliver"), and historical dramas ("Chernobyl").

A former financial crime investigator says Hollywood has done a pretty good job depicting money laundering

A former financial crime investigator says "Narcos" and "Ozark" have pretty realistic scenes, but other well-known financial crime depictions like "The Wolf of Wall Street" are off base. Some of the main inconsistencies include overly dramatic gunfights and unrealistic cash amounts.

‘Oz’ was cable’s first hour-long drama

When the dark prison story debuted in 1997, it was HBO’s only drama and followed a principle that would come to define the network’s shows for decades: “‘I don’t care if they’re likable as long as they’re interesting,’” show creator Tom Fontana told Vice. “That was my mantra.”

America's first trained EMT service was established in Pittsburgh's inner city

Watch this documentary about the Freedom House Ambulance Service—the foundation for all paramedic training in America. Founded in 1967, this emergency care force composed of Black men and women from Pittsburgh sought to respond to Pittsburgh's Black community emergencies when the Black community couldn't rely on the police and fire departments to consistently respond to their emergency calls.

The greatest HBO performances, ranked

Carrie Bradshaw, Selina Meyer, Tony Soprano: The list of standout HBO characters is endless. The network is known for fantastic writing and even better acting from the likes of Michael K. Williams, Kieran Culkin, Edie Falco, and hundreds of other A-listers. (Some users may experience a paywall.)

'Twenty-One' producers presented fabricated narratives as reality

Producers of “Twenty-One,” which featured two contestants competing from separate isolation booths, knew the quiz show format could use storytelling in the same way that any fictional program could. They found a perfect narrative in the matchup between Charles Van Doren, an all-American Columbia University instructor, and Herb Stempel, an arrogant Queens native. Stempel intentionally lost the game, pretending not to know the answer to a question about his favorite movie, “Marty.”

Auditions for the US adaptation of 'The Office' included many now-famous actors

When NBC decided to adapt "The Office" for American audiences, they auditioned in several comic character actors, including Seth Rogen, Bob Odenkirk, Kathryn Hahn, and Adam Scott. Though those actors didn't land the parts, they did end up with major roles in other critically-acclaimed movies and TV shows, including "Knocked Up," "Abigail All Along," "Better Call Saul," and "Severance."

Concierge medicine practices typically have hundreds of patients, instead of thousands

A clinician describes how he's "one call away" from his patients in the concierge medicine system. His patients pay about $150 per month to be members in his practice on top of normal care visit costs. Doctors like him may only have hundreds of patients in their practice—instead of thousands.

Precision medicine, offering the right treatment at the right time for individuals, integrates genomics, data analytics, and AI to predict risks, personalize treatments, and improve patient outcomes.

Richard Hittleman brought yoga to TV

"Yoga For Health" was a 1960s television show that sought to make yoga accessible for everyday Americans. Richard Hittleman, the show's host, walked viewers through basic postures, introducing them to the practice's therapeutic benefits. "We know that within us there's great forces, and great power, and great beauty," he says in this 1961 episode, "and the idea is to bring it out."

HBO’s biggest flops

Although HBO is known for its high-quality programming, that doesn’t mean it hasn’t missed the mark from time to time. Shows like “The Mind of the Married Man” and “John From Cincinnati” missed the mark in numerous ways, with both critics and audiences.

A TV show put one unsuspecting man on a fake jury surrounded entirely by actors for three weeks.

In the Amazon comedy "Jury Duty," Ronald Gladden believed he was participating in a documentary about the judicial process, unaware that everyone involved with the entire trial was an actor. In this podcast, Gladden and director Jake Szymanski reflect on the experience.

Doctors ignored women's pain as a nurse replaced their fentanyl with saline

This five-part podcast series, produced by Serial Productions, focuses on the experiences of women undergoing fertility treatments at a Yale clinic where a nurse secretly replaced pain medication with saline solution. This led to women experiencing excruciating pain during procedures, but the clinic downplayed or ignored their complaints.

Hear from the casting director who assembled the entirely fake jury for 'Jury Duty'

Casting director Susie Ferris breaks down how she built the show's ensemble from scratch, from combing through early audition tapes to persuading James Marsden to play a heightened version of himself alongside unknowing juror Ronald Gladden.

Concierge medicine offerings are growing on college campuses, catering to students

Parents are interested in concierge and direct primary care services for their kids, including offerings with dorm visits, guaranteed same-day appointments, and medication access, so new practices have sprung up catering to college settings. (Some users may encounter a paywall.)

There may be a surplus of nearly 8,000 emergency room doctors by 2030

That was the 2021 prediction of the American College of Emergency Physicians, which led to a sudden steep decline in the field among medical students and residents. (Some users may encounter a paywall.)

'The Sopranos' is often seen as the start of 'prestige television'

HBO’s The Sopranos followed New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano as he struggled to balance his violent criminal life with his personal and family issues. Its blend of crime drama, pitch-perfect comedy, and intergenerational family dynamics made for a complex show not easily reduced to typical genre tags.

See an analysis of the similarities between the characters in 'Silicon Valley' and the real people who inspired them

The HBO show "Silicon Valley" follows the story of an engineer who is trying to get his startup to take off in Silicon Valley. While one tech CEO said the show is like a documentary, many speculate the show is based on real life tech figures like Mark Zuckerberg and Peter Thiel.

Listen to how medical error affected an emergency physician's approach

Emergency physician Dr. Sarah Gray discusses her worst medical error, what she learned from it, and how medical error and the culture around it lead to physician burnout. In addition to lawsuits, medical errors can lead to guilt, shame, anxiety, and fears of embarrassment, so this podcast discusses how sharing such errors and teaching about them can improve care.

See the trailer for the 2017 HBO movie 'The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks' starring Oprah Winfrey, who plays the daughter of the Black woman whose cancer cells were taken without her knowledge or permission, and now underpin numerous scientific discoveries.

'Mad Men' is loosely based on the wild antics of Madison Avenue employees

The TV show follows the employees of a New York City ad agency as they navigate the debauched culture of Madison Avenue's golden age—and the political and cultural landscape of the 1960s. The hosts explain which episode to watch first if you want to get hooked.

Patients are messaging their doctors online more than ever—recent research suggests portal messages have risen by 157% since 2020.

Amazon's One Medical, MDVIP, and SignatureMD are examples of concierge practices

Annual fees for concierge practices can range widely. At the lower end, Amazon's One Medical costs $199 (which can drop to $99 if you're a Prime member) and four figures for MDVIP and SignatureMD. Annual fees jump to $10,000 or more for options like Massachusetts General Hospital's concierge practice.

How is precision medicine is transforming healthcare?

As the medical sector moves toward more personalized care, healthcare systems are using technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and data analytics to pave the way for precision medicine. This analysis in HealthTech Magazine looks into the...