I was thinking that now w/Carol's departure how ER needs to bring up a nurse as a main character. Why not Abby? (though I'd personally prefer Haleh or Lydia).

Abby's obviously having problems. Her character seems to be flustered right now, when at the beginning she showed tremendous promise. Maybe the line to Haleh & Lydia about "needing a change" an inward reflection on how being a med student is not all that she thought it might be. Carol didn't think so either remember.

-- AmyE (roamyn@aol.com), May 17, 2000

Answers

I liked Abby much more as a nurse; she was confident, happy (it seemed) cheerful while she was Carol's OB nurse. We need a main nurse character like that now. I personally think that it's a bit stupid to just go to med school for a change; I mean taking the MCAT's is fine,but to actually start the program just for a change, committing yourself to 8-10 years of something just for a change, is kind of irrational. And talk about the money involved that Abby doesn't seem to have. So anyway, if they want to promote a major nurse character, i think Abby would be good. She wont be a carol replacement, I think she's a lot different than Carol. Let's see.

-- samira (matb_west@chickmail.com), May 17, 2000.

I also liked Abby more as a nurse, but I think that if she was put in to the main character of a nurse she might seem to be to much of a replacement of Carol as she is now for Lucy. But, it would be nice for Abby to have a good story line and to be more cheerful and happy like when she was a nurse.

-- Aimee (aimeefield@hotmail.com), May 17, 2000.

It's probably easier to be happy and cheerful in OB than ER-- JMO.

-- Felicity (felicity08@juno.com), May 17, 2000.

Easier and happier, yes - but she's looking for a change. And unless TPTB are planning on shifting focus to OB, they'd have to write her out of the show. ;-)

-- Chava (ChavaW68@aol.com), May 18, 2000.

This is way out there, but is something I just thought of. Maybe part of the reason Abby was looking for a change and to get out of OB was because she and her husband had been trying to have kids and couldn't. So working in labor and delivery would be really depressing. That could have been part of the stress on her marriage...it could explain some money problems because infertility treatments are very expensive (I know she also has mega med school loans)...it could also explain the weird way she acted with the patient that had the abortion because she had too many kids and could not handle anymore. Anyway, just a thought into Abby's background of which we know nothing. Maybe we'll find out more next season! These are some things we can speculate on over the summer I guess!

-- amanda (amanda.rehm@home.com), May 18, 2000.

just because abby worked in OB as a nurse in the past, doesnt mean she cant be an ER nurse.

-- ALexis Springer (lexicat1@webtv.net), May 19, 2000.

Abby said she never expected to be accepted to med school, so I think the "change" she was looking for was taking the MCAT just to see what would happen. When she did well enough to be accepted to med school, I guess she jumped at it. Sure, it takes a long time, and it is expensive, but if her husband was as a much of a jerk as we have been led to believe, then the idea of eventual financial independence from him and the job security of the medical profession (everyone needs doctors) was probably too much for her to walk away from. The run-on sentence ends here.

-- Annie (GoldenLaur@aol.com), May 20, 2000.

With Carol Hathaway gone, the staff needs a head nurse. Maybe Abby will decide not to pursue med school and will instead become the head nurse in the ER. Or Haleh will become head nurse and Abby will work with her. I remember when Carol was suspended, Haleh was second in command so I assume she'd get promoted with Carol leaving permanately.

-- Carin Haseltine (cdenisehaze@usa.net), May 20, 2000.

I'm for Haleh and for Abby staying a doctor. She's made it this far, though she has a long way to go. ER had Carol consider medical school and then decide against it, I think to have Abby return to nursing would send the message that a nurse cannot become a doctor. I totally do not believe that and don't want to see it even hinted at. It probably was the right choice for Carol (but she never took a class I think), and I think going forward with her medical school work will be good for Abby in the long run.

-- Diana (dilynne@juno.com), May 21, 2000.