'Chicago Med: Season 10 Episode 18 "Together One Last Time" Review

This episode of Chicago Med was a lot, it was emotional, it was chaotic in parts, and somehow still really warm. It starts off with Dr. Naomi Howard walking into her last shift in the ED, and of course, Dr. Archer doesn’t let her leave quietly. He hands her one final patient: Murph. A patient that is infamous in the ED complaining about pain. He’s one of those patients who shows up with a ton of symptoms, chest tightness, neck pain, stomach issues, tingling in his hand and always somehow manages to be both dramatic and frustrating at the same time.

But Howard doesn’t blow him off. Even though it’s her last day, she dives right in. Orders an MRI, runs neuro tests, tries to figure out what’s going on, because that’s just how she is. Nothing’s showing up, but she’s not ready to call it, even though every doctor tells her she is wasting her time. 

Meanwhile, Ron Parker is recovering after collapsing earlier. Dr. Lennox and Dr. Hayes look into it and realize he’s got Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, a heart rhythm condition. The good news is, they can fix it with a catheter ablation. The bad news is, Ron doesn’t want to cancel his big birthday trip to Norway with Cynthia, his ex-wife who he’s kind of rekindling things with. But Cynthia isn’t messing around, she pushes him to take his health seriously. He finally agrees and goes into surgery with Hayes.

While Ron’s upstairs, Cynthia’s still down in the ED, and Dr. Charles picks up on some red flags. She’s a little off, stumbling over words, acting unusually impulsive, and he gently recommends a scan. It turns out she has frontotemporal dementia, the behavioral kind. It’s rare, it’s progressive, and it’s heartbreaking. She hasn’t told Ron. Charles doesn’t pressure her, but he understands that she’s trying to protect him, keep this little bit of happiness going while she still can.

Miles a kid who came in with a snake bite. The antivenom wasn’t working, and everyone was confused. Then his dad casually mentions the snake was red, black, and yellow. Dr Lenox says that it is a classic coral snake colors. Not native to the area and not covered by the antivenom they used. And then the dad drops this on them: he brought the snake to the hospital in a box… and lost it. He put it down after security stopped him, and now no one knows where it is. So yeah, there’s a venomous snake somewhere loose in the hospital, and no one’s allowed to say anything publicly because of protocol. It’s bizarre but tracks with crazy things that happen in the ED. 

Back to Murph, Dr. Howard doesn’t give up. She takes a step back and starts thinking differently. She suspects thoracic outlet syndrome, which is basically when nerves or blood vessels get pinched between the collarbone and the first rib. She gives him an injection in the neck, and just like that, his pain is gone. Like, completely. After years of pain, Murph’s crying, thanking her, calling her a saint. It’s honestly such a good moment for Howard to end on.

Ron’s surgery goes well, and when he wakes up, Cynthia finally tells him the truth about her condition. She’s scared. She tells him she doesn’t know how long she’ll be herself, and that she understands if he wants to walk away. But Ron doesn’t even blink. He tells her the last few weeks have been some of the happiest of his life, and then, he asks her to marry him again. Right there in the hospital bed. And she says yes. It’s messy and beautiful and sad and kind of perfect.

Then we get hit with the heaviest part of the episode. Dr. Asher’s sister, Lizzy, is in the hospital after a miscarriage. They did a D&C, but she started bleeding badly during the procedure. When they opened her up to control it, they found her uterus was necrotic. There was no choice, they had to do a full hysterectomy to save her life. When Lizzy wakes up and finds out, she’s devastated. Becoming a mom was everything to her. She looks at Dean Archer, who helped make the call, and says, “You took my uterus without my consent.” Hannah tries to explain they had no other option, that she couldn’t lose her, but she’s shattered. It’s one of those moments where no matter how right the decision was medically, it doesn’t make the outcome hurt any less. The sisters cry and hold each other tightly. 

The episode ends with Howard’s goodbye. Doris brings out the cake, the team gathers, and even Hayes stops by. Lenox says she might actually join him at that Myrtle Beach conference that was discussed earlier in the episode. Lenox told Hayes no, now she says she likes her margaritas on the rocks, no salt. He laughs, says he’s salty enough for both of them. It’s sweet. Naomi reflects on what the ED means, how it’s the place people come when they’re at their worst, and sometimes, you help turn things around. You can tell she’s proud, and everyone there is going to miss her.

In the last scene, Frost clearly not okay. He’s sitting alone, still reeling from everything with Miles and his parents choosing social media engagement over taking care of their son. . Dr. Charles checks in, quiet, just trying to be there, but Frost pushes him away. Charles doesn’t force it, just reminds him he’s not checking in as a shrink. He’s checking in as a friend.

This episode was classic Chicago Med. Messy, emotional, and real. It showed the best and worst parts of the job, how sometimes you save someone’s life and still break their heart, and how even on your way out, like Howard, you can leave a mark that matters.

What did you think of the episode and our Chicago Med review? Drop a comment.

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