Obsessed With 'The Pitt'? Watch This Overlooked Medical Drama With 96% on RT (It's Available on Netflix)

Medical dramas come in all shapes and sizes. Some romanticize the profession, portraying doctors as heroic figures, while others depict hospitals as places where lives are saved in spite of the system.

This Is Going to Hurt is one of the latter. The British series, based on the memoirs of obstetrician and gynecologist Adam Kay, received rave reviews but went largely unnoticed outside the UK for some reason.

What Is 'This Is Going to Hurt' About?

Adam, an obstetrician-gynecologist, is teetering on the brink of a nervous breakdown. Endless shifts, sleeping in his car, and the pressure of the state system are destroying his personal life and professional confidence.

He is isolating himself from his loved ones, failing to cope with his responsibilities, and risking job loss. At the other end of the spectrum is his intern, Shruti. She is full of enthusiasm and idealism and is just beginning her journey in the harsh reality of hospital life.

Their stories intertwine amid births, deaths, bureaucratic absurdities, and rare moments of quiet happiness.

'This Is Going to Hurt' Is Based on Adam Kay's Memoir Book of the Same Name

In 2017, former obstetrician-gynecologist Adam Kay published a memoir titled This Is Going to Hurt. Kay worked at the hospital from 2004 to 2010, rising from intern to senior resident before leaving medicine due to chronic burnout.

In his book, Kay detailed the inhumane conditions under which doctors had to save lives. He did so with such dark humor and self-deprecating irony that the memoir became a bestseller.

Kay adapted the series himself, retaining both the tone and details of the original. Ben Whishaw, known for his roles in Black Doves and Cloud Atlas, as well as for voicing Paddington, plays the lead character.

Here, he transforms into a weary nihilist with a nervous tic and oozing vulnerability that he refuses to address.

'This Is Going to Hurt' Is an Honest & Poignant Story That Doesn't Romanticize Doctors' Work

There's no room for Hollywood cliches about heroic doctors in This Is Going to Hurt, only reality: crowded hallways, underfunding, sleepless nights, and decisions made on the fly.

The creators aren't afraid to show how the system can break even the most resilient people. Adam ignores a patient's complaints, which leads to near-fatal consequences, and then he lashes out at his loved ones. Shruti, who entered the profession with passion, gradually loses her illusions.

The social agenda deserves special attention: class inequality, the disparity between private clinics and public healthcare, and domestic violence. All of these issues are depicted with surgical precision, without moralizing.

Adam Kay left medicine in 2010 with a shattered nervous system and nightmares. His series isn't consoling, but it offers a necessary truth that provides its own kind of healing.

What Did Critics & Viewers Think of 'This Is Going to Hurt'?

• This Is Going to Hurt has 96% from critics and 92% from viewers on Rotten Tomatoes.

• On IMDb, the series has a score of 8.3/10.

Where to Watch 'This Is Going to Hurt'?

This Is Going to Hurt is available to stream on Netflix.