The Cast of CTV’s TRANSPLANT Share the Challenges of “Scrubbing In” as TV Doctors

When a trauma case arrives in the Emergency Department of the fictional York Memorial Hospital, doctors in the most-watched Canadian drama TRANSPLANT (Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CTV) spit out rapid-fire medical terms with ease. Although production worked closely with medical consultants during the development and creation of the series, filming a medical procedural is a challenge for actors (who are not doctors but play one on TV), directors, and everyone working on set. Learning medical jargon, mastering the special effects needed to create realistic injuries and surgeries, and getting through the pre-filming medical boot camp – it was a learning process for everyone involved in TRANSPLANT. This is particularly true for Ayisha Issa (Dr. June Curtis), who has had a phobia of needles for as long as she can remember. Ayisha found herself experiencing a real panic attack the first time she had to deal with needles on set. “They absolutely made sure that I confronted my fear [of needles] in literally the biggest way possible,” said Ayisha. In the end, not only did Ayisha face the challenge like a pro, but she discovered that exposure therapy really works. That needle phobia is now a thing of the past. Co-star Laurence Leboeuf (Dr. Mags Leblanc) found learning the clinical terminology the most taxing. “The medical dialogue has been really challenging, and because I want Mags to speak fast and never stumble over her words, it’s been a struggle for me to learn those lines and make them sound as if I know what I’m saying, and that I’ve been studying the subject for years. That’s been a much bigger challenge than I thought it would be.” Cast mate Linda E. Smith (Dr. Wendy Atwater) couldn’t agree more with Laurence, saying: “I don’t know how they memorize all that stuff, but they do! It’s a language. It’s medical language, and like anything else, you have to practice it. So that has definitely been challenging.” For Jim Watson (Dr. Theo Hunter), remembering the right way to use a stethoscope was the main hurdle, but he can now say “supraventricular tachycardia” pretty darn fast. All-new episodes of TRANSPLANT continue Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CTV, with episodes also available to stream on CTV.ca and Crave.