New Amsterdam is a fictional hospital that is inspired by the Bellevue Hospital, which happens to be the oldest public hospital in New York City.
New Amsterdam is a medical drama series which premiered on NBC in 2018. The series follows a newly appointed chief medical director, Dr Max Goodwin, and his efforts to provide quality medical services to under-serviced patients.
Though the series is purely fictional, the story is based on an autobiographical memoir by Dr Eric Manheimer, titled Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital.
As a result, the name of the hospital that heavily features in the series is fictional, but it is based on Bellevue Hospital’s history.
Is Dr Max Goodwin a real character?
New Amsterdam is told through the central lens of Dr Max Goodwin, who is played by Ryan Eggold.
When the show premiered, in reference to his character, Eggold stated, “He’s got this caution to the wind attitude…It’s like, roll the sleeves up, get your hands dirty. If that gets you fired, then that gets you fired.”
As mentioned above, Goodwin is based on Dr Eric Manheimer’s autobiographical memoir, that depicted the working conditions of Bellevue Hospital, while he was at the helm, as the newly appointed chief medical director.
Is New Amsterdam a real hospital?
Much like the premise of the series, the main hospital is also fictional. However, the inspiration of the hospital is believed to have been founded on the existing New York City (NYC) public hospital, Bellevue Hospital.
The hospital is recorded as the oldest public hospital in NYC. Due to this fact, through the years it has been under-serviced, which has impacted the quality of care it provides.
Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital aimed to encapsulate Dr Manheimer’s efforts to turn the ethos of the hospital around. Thus, New Amsterdam showcases a fictional interpretation of Manheimer’s journey.
Therefore, though New Amsterdam Hospital does not exist as a real physical hospital, it does take its inspiration from the systems and realities of the healthcare workers at Bellevue Hospital.
What is the intended impact of New Amsterdam?
Considering that there is an already saturated market for medical dramas on television, despite following the same trajectory, New Amsterdam has different intentions then those that are currently airing.
The aim of the series is to highlight the realities of the pressures of working in a public hospital, while humanising the staff and healthcare workers that render the services.
To ensure that the series is effective in this regard, Dr Eric Manheimer is also a producer on the show. In 2019, he further confirmed this intention by stating, “The origin of the book was really my experiences at Bellevue hospital where I was the chief medical director for 15 years.”
How many seasons are there of New Amsterdam?
New Amsterdam is currently in its fourth season. The series aired the tenth episode of the fourth season in November 2021, ahead of the festive mid-break. It is set to return to the silver screens on 4 January 2022, with the eleventh episode of season four.
According to IMDb, the premise of the upcoming episode, which is titled Talk About A Revolution reads, “Max and Sharpe settle happily into their new life in London; Dr. Fuentes takes over as medical director with disastrous effects; Bloom helps a patient who thinks he’s cursed; Iggy develops a plan to get his psych patients gainfully employed.”
Is Ryan Eggold leaving New Amsterdam?
As indicated by the trajectory of the eleventh episode of season four, Dr Max Goodwin does relocate to London, which has resulted in questions whether actor Ryan Eggold is looking to leave the show.
However, both the production and Eggold have not confirmed or indicated that he will be leaving the show. Moreover, with the confirmation of a fifth season, it seems that Eggold will remain at the helm of New Amsterdam.
Conclusion
New Amsterdam is a medical series, and unlike other popular medical series, it aims to tell the stories of healthcare workers in the public health sector.
The series is based on the autobiographical memoir by former Bellevue Hospital medical chief director, Dr Eric Manheimer, titled Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital.
As a result, the hospital within the NBC medical drama series is also fictional, but is inspired by the events that took place at the oldest public hospital in NYC, during Manheimer’s 15-year tenure as Bellevue Hospital’s chief medical director.
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