Practically everytime you turn the television on, you are greeted by some sort of medical drama. All these shows are entertaining and some show some truths and insights to the medical world.

Here are the top 5 TV doctors that have graced our small screens:

5. Dr. Addison Montgomery – Dr. Addison was first featured on Grey’s Anatomy as the scorned wife of Dr. Derek “McDreamy” Shephard. Dr. Montgomery may have made some interesting personal life choices (affairs with her husband’s best friend!) but she has always been an advocate for woman and babies. As a neonatal surgeon with board certifications in Obsterics and Gynaecology, watching her both on Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice is a refreshing course in woman’s reproductive health.

4. Benjamin Franklin “Hawkeye” Pierce - M*A*S*H has been off the air for a long time, but it’s episodes are timeless. While this television show is mostly comedic and ridiculous, it displays some of the hardships of being a medical team during a war. Hawkeye works hard to get supplies that the team needs, makes his patients feel comfortable and eases the tension in the most uncomfortable, wartorn circumstances. At the root of his antics, the patients are always his priority and making them comfortable and safe is his number one concern.

3. Dr. Leo Spaceman - 30 Rock’s celebrity resident doctor is nothing but a joke. His tagline is “Fertility | Meth Addiction | Child Psychology – A Fine Doctor, and a Pretty Good Dentist!” If you ever come across a doctor like this, run – don’t walk, the other direction. All too often horror stories are told about bogus medical advice a friend or family member received, Dr. Spaceman rolls all those stereotypes into one hilarious (and completely inappropriate) celebrity doctor.

2. Dr. House - If I ever had something mysteriously wrong with me, I would want Dr. House to be my diagnostician. He picks up on small details, like simple conversation and subtle insights in the way the patient moves, to make a correct diagnosis. Despite the fact he is always breaking hospital policy and that he is generally disagreeable – it’s hard to argue that he’s not a good doctor. Dr. House is indifferent to his patients, which makes people uneasy, but it’s what allows him to diagnose so well. By making the patients seem unimportant, he can focus on their symptoms and save their lives.

1. Nurse Jackie - Ok, she’s not a doctor. But, she’s essential to the hospital staff. She makes herself more valuable than the doctors at her New York City hospital by being an expert diagnostitian and having a superior bedside manner. Nurse Jackie does play fast and loose with some ethical rules, she herself is addicted to painkillers and has an affair with the hospital pharmicist to obtain her dose of pills. But even with her questionable morals and her drug addiction, Nurse Jackie proves over and over again that she knows what she is doing. Having a biting sarcastic wit with the doctors and administrators on staff, but a calm, kind and soothing tone with patients and worried loved ones, she immediately is a favorite among patients and their family members. Doctors are unable to do what they do without nurses, Nurse Jackie hits that point home every single episode.

As many of you know, I plan on becoming a licensed physician within the next five years, so this topic is something I have to be aware of. Afterall, unless something drastic happens in the American healthcare system (slim chance), I’ll be facing the same issues outlined in the article. Going back to the “hard work” phrase, I’ll admit that most jobs have some annoying components which professionals have to fulfill by principle, not choice. By the same token, there are many individuals who acknowledge the education of a medical doctor to be the most demanding and rigorous of all. It therefore baffles me when I start considering the frustrations doctors must deal with.

After a decade of basic education and specialized training, why do they still get questioned by a minimum-wage desk clerk when they request an MRI for their patient? True, the paper work has to be filled out and everything, but streamlining the process would be so much better for both processes. We live in an era dominated by technology, yet many of our physicians literally have to deal with disorganized folders upon folders of paperwork. While fragile economy is becoming more susceptible to recession-related consequences (inflation, unemployment, etc.), why do lawmakers turn to programs like Medicare to make significant cuts? A 10.6% cut in Medicare payments to physicians is terrible! Yes, physicians tend to make more money than other professions; however, the expenditures are also significantly higher. Many doctors are only accepting patients who pay out-of-pocket and refusing those with Medicare alltogether. Some may consider this cruel, but then again, these are the same people who think that doctors who don’t perform free surgeries are cruel too. Medical – treatment – costs – money… for both the patient and doctor.

It’s just amazing how discouraged doctors are becoming about their profession. In a job which is truly universal, as everyone is in need of healthcare, when are lawmakers going to facilitate the monster which has become US healthcare? Physicians should have to worry very little about non-medical agendas as their job entails far more than menial paperwork. They should be receiving far more attention from the people who are making their lives miserable – our friends on Capitol Hill.