Sturgess' team is joined by Dr. Peter Morgan (Kiefer Sutherland), who plans to work temporarily in the hospital before starting private practice. He's eventually instructed by Sturgess and his colleagues Ruby Bobrick (John C. McGinley), Sid Handleman (Forest Whitaker) and Robin Van Dorn (Lea Thompson) and constantly monitored by Nurse White (Lynne Thigpen). His 'potential' after failing to attend to Travis' heart attack and causing a ruptured artery leads Sturgess to try and convince him to join the team and also fight Dreyfoos' administration, but Morgan refuses, fearful their wrongdoings will eventually influence his medical career. Meanwhile, Morgan also meets World War II veteran Sam Abrams (Eli Wallach), considered by the hospital a 'gomer', a person who cannot be admitted even with a critical condition and has to be constantly moved and kept from administration so he will not be discharged. Abrams' sharing of experiences with Morgan has the newcomer doctor slowly start caring for him and start disagreeing with several of the hospital's conditions, especially that he cannot accommodate the veteran and has to use old diagnoses to repeat needless exams. Morgan also starts a relationship with Robin while Sturgess does so with psychologist Diana Walton (Kathy Baker), equally a by-the-book character that slowly starts opening up to Sturgess shortly after Polaski's incident.