Five-year-old girls dream of becoming princesses because they spend their time watching Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. Ten-year-olds aspire to be pop stars because Disney Channel taught them they can have the “best of both worlds.” Now teenage girls are trading in ballgowns and the paparazzi for scrubs and scalpels. The hit ABC drama Grey’s Anatomy has influenced teenagers to pursue careers in medicine as it depicts the lives of surgeons and doctors as glamorous and thrilling.

Grey’s Anatomy is one of the highest rated series on television, mostly for the inspiration it provides to millions of fans. Many of the show’s female viewers have been influenced to enter the medical field due to the fact that the ABC series focuses on brilliant, leading female surgeons.

An estimate of 55% of the female student body at St. Dominic have considered or know that they want to pursue a career in medicine. Last year, Grey’s Anatomy was featured as one of the most watched shows on Netflix by our student body. Coincidence? I think not. One example is senior Kate Shipp, an avid Grey’s watcher, who plans to study nursing at Rockhurst University next fall.

“I watch Grey’s Anatomy all the time. Although I’ve heard it’s very unrealistic compared to real life, I think some aspects [of the show] that will be similar are the stress and always seeing different emergencies in the hospitals,” said Shipp.

The unrealistic side of Grey’s Anatomy includes unexpected plot twists and endless drama, all of which do not occur normally in everyday hospitals. The life of scrubs, stitches and surgeries is glamorized by weekly house parties and brutishly good looks. In reality, interns usually don’t make their way through residency by befriending their attendings, and hospitals don’t lose their residents every other year to car accidents, mass shootings and plane crashes, but it does indeed keep the audience hooked.

With just one scroll across Twitter or Facebook, teenagers are bombarded with Grey’s quotes, iconic scenes and beloved characters. The influence on teenage girls from watching the show eventually influences some of them to pursue careers in medicine. Although Grey’s Anatomy might not be based in reality, it is great to promote such a field that pushes girls to empower themselves and work hard.