Grey’s Anatomy season 19 has seen a change in wardrobe for the OB/GYNs, with their pink scrubs being swapped out in favor of black ones. Scrub colors in hospitals and on Grey’s Anatomy denote positions in the hospitals, with surgical interns and residents in pale blue scrubs and surgical attendings and fellows in navy scrubs. Nonsurgical doctors have differing scrub colors based on department, and until season 19, the OB/GYNs on Grey’s Anatomy have worn pink. What changed?
The OB/GYN department has received an increase in screen time on Grey’s Anatomy in the later seasons, thanks to the introduction of Dr. Carina DeLuca and Jo’s decision to switch from general surgery to OB. While Grey’s Anatomy season 19 has created a major Schmitt problem, he too tried his hand at OB before deciding it wasn’t for him. Most of the medical storylines surrounding the OB/GYN doctors on the show have revolved around childbirth, though recent political changes in the United States surrounding abortion rights have led to changes in the series as well, including the new black scrubs.
Black Scrubs In Grey’s Anatomy Is A Political Statement
Jo addresses the change to black scrubs on Grey’s Anatomy by saying, “The female body has become a war zone in this country, and pink is a peacetime color.” On Station 19, Carina told Jack that the OB/GYNs are “wearing black scrubs in protest because women’s bodies are held hostage by the government.” The statements are quick and subtle, but the impact is felt beyond their clothing. Grey’s has always commented on the issues going on in the nation at the time, most recently with the COVID-19 storyline that led to Meredith seeing dead characters on a beach in her comatose state.
This is far from the first time that abortion and abortion rights have been discussed on Grey’s Anatomy or its spinoffs, Station 19 and Private Practice. In fact, multiple characters within the Grey’s universe, including Addison, Violet, Cristina, Vic, and more have had abortions. Back in 2008, the issue of abortion rights was a focus of Private Practice when the doctors debated whether abortions should be performed at Oceanside Wellness. In a 2011 episode, Addison even brought up the 1972 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion nationally, which was overturned earlier this year, leading to the decision for the OB/GYNs to wear black scrubs.
Other Storylines Grey’s Is Using This Season About Reproductive Health
In her time away after stepping down as Chief of Surgery, Bailey turned her focus to helping women and teens learn about reproductive health. In Grey’s Anatomy season 19, episode 3, “Let’s Talk About Sex,” Bailey returns to Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital and enlists the new intern class, Jo, and Addison to educate a group of high schoolers on sexual education. It’s a humorous episode that still manages to teach the students and viewers a thing or two about reproductive health and its importance. Two episodes later, Grey’s Anatomy featured another storyline about reproductive health, but in a much more serious manner.
In episode 5, Addison and Bailey encountered anti-abortion protestors and the consequences of the total abortion ban in neighboring Idaho. They volunteer to bring a woman having an ectopic pregnancy to a clinic in Washington for a medically necessary abortion, but a traffic jam causes her to bleed out on the side of the road. This prompted Addison to ask, “How are we supposed to treat patients when we are hamstrung by laws that are written by people who are so far away from this?” It was a powerful Grey’s Anatomy episode that didn’t shy away from the harm being done by abortion bans to doctors and patients alike.
