Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5 Review: Bad Habits

More hints and scares prepare us for what’s to come regarding Goodwin’s stalker on Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 5, “Bad Habits.” Even though CPD clears Goodwin’s house, stating no one was there, Goodwin does her own research and discovers there was, in fact, someone in her house.

The most shocking part of this storyline isn’t the fact that someone is still stalking Goodwin. That is to be expected since we’ve seen clues all season long, yet nothing has happened. The most shocking is that Goodwin would try to approach whoever was in her house.

Knowing that someone has threatened to kill her, why would she even consider confronting whoever is home? Luckily, the only confrontation she has with this person is through an iPad as she watches the security video. Nevertheless, we know there will be more to come, and this isn’t the end of the death threat storyline.

As per usual, Chicago Med delivers great storylines for each patient who visits the ED. Between pregnant nuns, bat bites, Ripley’s friend’s baby visiting the ED, and Lenox saving the day, a lot goes on for one episode. But even then, “Bad Habits” allows us to connect with each story fully.

After everything that had happened, Charles was the most supportive of Jackie’s return to the ED on Chicago Med Season 10 Episode 4, “Blurred Lines.” But this time around, it is he who butts heads with her regarding a patient’s care.

Most of the time, or at least most of the time we’ve seen him deal with a patient, Charles is always right about the diagnosis. He is, after all, the resident mental health expert. However, this episode proves that isn’t always the case.

As one could predict with Jackie’s return, she treats every patient with the respect and the sympathy she wanted (and got from Charles and Maggie) for herself. Therefore, every patient who comes into her care is given the benefit of the doubt because of her personal experience.

That is what pushes her to question Charles and go as far as calling Cuevas in his name. Even though she pushes the boundaries, and that would have pissed off most doctors, Charles comes to understand why she did it as he hears her story.

Jackie’s character is probably the only time we, as viewers, are happy to see someone push the boundaries so hard. Her personal experience in the psych ward will continue to force her to advocate for her patients and give them the care they deserve.

Amongst the chaos of the ED, Lenox catches our eye. She remains calm while everyone around her seems to be going crazy with each new patient.

Truthfully, until Lenox lays on the floor with Leo, transmitting to him her calmness and allowing him to be himself, there might have been concerns regarding how the episode deals with an autistic patient.

At first, everyone who comes across Leo reacts in a way that makes us feel like he has a terrible and contagious disease. While it’s understandable his mother is nervous because something is happening to her baby, it surprises us that even healthcare professionals don’t know how to help him.

However, in the long run, everyone’s reaction contrasts with how Lenox reacts to him. She doesn’t try to calm him down, to change his behavior, or to take him away from where he is. On the contrary, she lays on the floor with him and allows him to breathe in his own time.

This is the first time we see Lenox for who she is and not for her work. She becomes more than a doctor; she is a woman with feelings and emotions.

But as Asher and Maggie point out, she is still a mystery. Clearly, the mystery will stick around for Chicago Med Season 10, and it’ll be interesting to see how she continues to adjust to the ED.

“Bad Habits” shows us how strong Asher truly is. Even though she should be able to keep a straight face when examining her patient, she doesn’t freak out or go the extra unnecessary mile.

She runs all the tests and administers the care her patient needs, showing that she can do her job even though losing a patient shook her up.

Because of the patient’s loss and her ability to find her center again, Goodwin notices a need in their community that Asher can help with. While Lenox asks Asher what her relevance in the ED is and tries to stop her from taking care of “unnecessary” patients, Goodwin proves that Asher’s experience is extremely necessary.

Chicago Med won’t be the first to create a storyline in which an OB doctor works a mobile unit bringing care to women in need, but it will be interesting to see how Asher navigates this new challenge. It will be particularly interesting to see how this works with Lenox’s memo.

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Chicago Med airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on NBC.

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