Grey’s Anatomy – Season 16 Episode 18 Recap and Review

Free Surgeries

Episode 18 of Grey’s Anatomy is quite the improvement from its previous ones. The pro-bono story line was interesting and brought some serious issues forward in America regarding health services. Thankfully, there were also enough interesting medical cases this week as we followed our usual character dramas.

It’s pro-bono surgery day for Meredith; she calls Jo who is late and tells her to come as soon as possible as they have 25 patients to see. Maggie and Webber catch up as he tells her that he just received divorce papers. We then cut back to Meredith who tries asking Webber to help her but he declines, while Amelia reveals to Owen and Teddy that the baby’s father is Link.

DeLuca tends to a young teen called Cindy, who has a bulge in her stomach. Her aunt Opal keeps answering for her and insists to stay next to her even after DeLuca asks her to wait in the family room. This makes him suspicious that Cindy may be a victim of human trafficking and relays this to a nurse whom he asks to call Bailey.

Amelia meets with Link who tells her he has been offered his old job back with more money but is turning it down due to his future baby and the fact that it involves a lot of travelling. He then recommends Nico for it instead, which surprises Schmitt.

Teddy’s patient, Kyle, is a veteran who has been arrested for holding the shop hostage with a grenade. She believes he has PTSD and a brain injury too. After taking a look at him, Amelia and Teddy meet with his wife who tells them that he has not been the same since coming back from the army and explains that he is not taking his meds.

Convinced that Cindy is a victim, DeLuca seeks Bailey’s advice and insists that she takes a look at her. After examining her, Bailey doesn’t believe him and tells him he is off the case. This then delays one of the pro-bono surgeries as Bailey had to leave her surgery.

DeLuca decides to go back to see Cindy and his aunt to tell them that Meredith will give her free surgery as it is pro-bono day. Meredith later finds out that he has been interfering with the schedule of her surgeries which makes her angry. We then cut to DeLuca who finds out from an angry Helm that his patient will not be getting surgery.

Amelia and Teddy look at Kyle’s results and see that he has a condition that is curable, while Meredith is struggling with all her surgeries. She speaks to Koracick about it who tells her he will give her more time and admits to what he has done with Ford. Suddenly, the alarm sounds which means that a patient is being violent with a member or staff. Everyone rushes over and sees DeLuca telling people to arrest Opal whom he insists is hurting Cindy. They don’t believe him though so they circle him and take him away.

Schmitt confronts Nico about his lack of commitment in their relationship. Nico doesn’t respond well though and tells him that he hopes he finds someone who does while DeLuca walks away from the hospital and tells Meredith he is quitting. She tries to stop him, telling him she loves him and tries to convince him to take some time to think it over.

Meredith returns to her patients and is still struggling to keep everyone happy so she announces that the hospital will offer a pro-bono day every month. Teddy and Amelia meanwhile give the good news to Kyle and his wife, explaining that his condition will help him in court and that his surgery will be free.

As the episode ends, we see that DeLuca was right when we hear how Opal speaks to Cindy while Jackson takes Webber to a basketball match. In the bar, Jo sees a depressed Schmitt and invites him to stay with her for a while. Koracick speaks to Teddy and ends things as he loves her but she is getting married. While in bed, Amelia talks to Link about dreams and suggest that he takes the job, while Teddy breaks down in tears to Owen. At the same time, DeLuca rides his bike and speeds down the road dangerously.

This season of Grey’s Anatomy has really been all over the place. After some very questionable episodes, the season has improved slightly with another decent episode. While it is still not at the heights it used to reach ( I am not sure it ever will again to be honest), this episode was more entertaining thanks to its engaging and new idea surrounding pro-bono surgeries.

Ever determined to make a difference, Meredith takes the reigns and after some struggles, comes out on top and manages to give everyone what they need. On the other hand, DeLuca is having a tough time and despite the obvious mental health issues, he has a right to be frustrated.

While this was a better episode, it still doesn’t make up for the fact that this season has been the weakest one so far. However, with more episodes like this one, there might still be some hope left for this medical drama to turn it around and end on a high.