"Cheat Day" (originally titled "Sacrifice") is the tenth episode of Season 5 of The Good Doctor. It is the eighty-sixth episode overall, and aired on March 14, 2022.
Synopsis[]
Salen (Rachel Bay Jones) takes extreme measures when she learns that the surgical staff have joined Lim’s efforts against her. Meanwhile, the team treats a liver transplant patient whose organ donor unwittingly gave him cancer. And elsewhere, Jordan, Asher and Andrews look for a surgical solution to remove a pregnant surrogate’s cancer in such a way that she won’t also need a hysterectomy to survive.
Plot[]
Shaun is using his computer in his room when Lea and Aaron Glassman walk into his room. Shaun greets the two and explains that working for Salen made him a bad doctor so he quit. Shaun is creating a spreadsheet of residency programs but Aaron informs him that not a lot of programs will take a resident at Shaun's level and he's vulnerable because of his ASD. Lea informs him that they're talking to a reporter who wants to write a story about the the damage Salen has done to St. Bonaventure. The hope is that this story will put pressure on the Pension Fund and stop the hospital purchase deal. She thinks it best that Shaun apologizes to Salen and asks for his job so Shaun can save his career as a surgeon. Shaun doesn't believe that Salen will say yes but Aaron believes otherwise as Shaun is on a billboard and doubts Salen will remove Shaun from the building kicking and scream as it would be a PR disaster. Shaun believes he has nothing to apologize for and Salen should be the one apologizing. Lea and Aaron don't disagree and if they pull their idea off then Shaun only has to work for Salen for eight days. He asks what happens if they don't pull it off and Aaron answers they will come up with another plan. Shaun decides he will focus on the medicine aspect of his job.
Salen and Marcus talk over breakfast. He tells her there's a moral problem at the hospital that could come from aftershocks from the situation with the baby. Salen plans to replace people when the deal closes but it will be hard to replace good doctors. She believes she will find others who are better aligned with Ethicure but Marcus wants to keep them. She aks how his morale is and Marcus says he's fine. Salen hopes he isn't doubting him. Salen is then happy as she thinks about the future of the hospital and, with Marcus' help, it will be the best hospital in the bay area.
Morgan is examining a patient, Ryan, who recently fell and his head. Shaun walks into the room and she asks why he is at the hospital. He tells her he's focusing on the medicine and has no patients of his own to work on. He then talks to the male patient about his symptoms but Morgan interrupts him. She tells Shaun that the patient got a donor liver from his best friend, Dom. Morgan wants to schedule a head CT to see if the fall left any damage. Ryan likes the plan and tells his best friend that he might get his liver back if he dies. Shaun informs them that a donor doesn't get their liver back when the person they donated to dies. When he leaves the room, Salen is standing outside the door.
Shaun tries to walk away from Salen but she follows him and asks why he is at the hospital. Shaun says he works at the hospital but Salen says he doesn't and requests that he leaves the hospital. Shaun rejects the request but she tells him to leave again before trying to walk away. Again, Shaun tells her no and she stops walking. Shaun repeats Aaron's words about why Salen can't fire him.
Jordan, Asher, and Audrey Lim are the ER and Audrey asks her patient, Grace who is a pregnant surrogate, when the bleeding started. Next to the bed, Amanda informs Audrey that the patient is pregnant with her last viable embryo. Jordan mistakes the two for a couple and Grace corrects her, informing Jordan that Grace is Amanda's surrogate. Asher asks if surrogates often hang out with their clients but Amanda sees Grace as family, not a surrogate. Jordan examines the baby and says the heartbeat is healthy. Grace then experiences pain and tells them that something is wrong.
Ryan is getting an MRI and Alex Park talks to Shaun about Ethicure. He asks if Shaun knows that some of the employees are going public against Ethicure. Shaun confirms he does as Lea and Aaron informed him but the two think it best that Shaun doesn't get involved in the plan. Alex asks what Shaun wants to do but Shaun is unsure. Alex believes that whatever happens, Shaun will be on the employees' side and not Salen's. The scan is clear but Ryan starts seizuring.
Grace's scans have shown up normal. Jordan tells Asher that she likes what Grace is doing but Asher isn't as positive about it. He would like it more if Grace wasn't getting paid to carry the baby. Jordan doesn't see the problem as Grace is helping create families but Asher points out that he's not the only one that thinks that way as commercial surrogacy, surrogacy where the carrier is compensated, is illegal in other countries. He thinks it's exploitative. Jordan finds it funny that people only care about exploitation when it concerns women and their bodies but don't care that football players are getting brain injuries every Sunday and the act is glorified. Asher agrees then he tries to convince Jordan to join him and the employees against Salen. Jordan then notices something alarming on Grace's scans.
At Audrey's apartment, Audrey, Lea, Aaron, Alex, and Asher listen to other doctor's testimonies against Salen. There's a knock on the door and Lea believes it's the pizza guy; however, it's not the pizza guy. Salen is at the door with the pizza they had ordered. She compliments their plan about the reporter then tells Alex and Asher that they should get back to work. Alex and Asher refuse. Salen says Asher has guts for a guy who killed someone and Alex should take lessons from Morgan as she knows how to play the park. She then fires Aaron, Audrey, and Lea before asking if Alex and Asher want to go back to work now that their jobs are on the line. The two leave and Audrey talks to Salen. She asks if Salen plans on making the three of them look like disgruntled former employees to stop them. Salen says that's not her plan and presents them each with documents against them - Aaron for always getting Shaun's behavior excused, Audrey for firing Mateo because their relationship soured and how that behavior can be seen as sexual harassment, and Lea for changing the reviews on Shaun. She won't release the information if they stay quiet.
Following the incident, the reporter will still write the story but it will be shorter than planned. Audrey suggests they get the reporter to the pension fund meeting as it will be a public setting with a lot of investors. In front of the investors, they can denounce Salen and make a viral moment in hopes it will do some damage. Even though Salen could ruin Lea's career in tech, Lea still wants in on the plan.
Marcus finds Salen and tells her Audrey and Aaron are good doctors. Salen agrees but they tried to ruin her company and she can't accept that. Marcus has backed Salen up in every step but blackmail is unacceptable to him. Salen ells him to think about the big picture as they lost the chief of surgery of the hospital. While Salen is here short term, Marcus can have chief of surgery and keep it when she leaves.
Grace asks where Audrey is and Marcus informs her that Audrey is no longer available. He reassures Grace by telling her that he's now the chief of surgery and will be involved in Grace's case. He then informs Grace that she has a sarcoma on her bladder that is abutting the uterus. The sarcoma is small right now but will grow as the fetus does. Amanda asks what they can do about the sarcoma. The best option is to terminate the pregnancy, remove the sarcoma, and start Grace on chemotherapy. Grace asks for other options and there are chemotherapies safe for pregnant women but those options are less effective against the cancer. Grace wants to do the more safe chemotherapies and Amanda asks if Grace is sure. Grace assures her that she's sure.
Alex finds Morgan who tells him he's lucky he has a job. He tells her that Salen wants him to play the game and Morgan agrees, however, Alex never thought of being a surgeon as a game. Morgan asks why Alex is obsessing over the situation and tells him they have a meeting.
Marcus is in the chief of surgery office where has called Morgan, Shaun, and Alex in. Shaun is not interested in talking about his colleagues that got fired as he's busy focusing on the medicine, as he said he would. They talk about Ryan and Alex doesn't think that Ryan has encephalitis, like Shaun believes, but he has a cardiac problem. Marcus agrees with Alex but Shaun tells Marcus to trust him as he was right about the surgery from the day before and he's right now. Marcus tells them to rule out encephalitis as well as look into a cardiac problem.
Asher tells Jordan about Audrey's plan but Jordan doesn't want to hear it as she would rather focus on helping Grace. Asher says he will speak out with Audrey and the others but Jordan doesn't think he should as his whole career will be ruined, and his life might be affected as well. Asher remarks it won't the first time his life was ruined and asks for Jordan to join them as she's great at sales. He believes she should stand with them but Jordan tells him no and what she stands for is her choice and her friends should respect that. Marcus interrupts as he wants to know what the two have come up with. However, Grace crashes before they can discuss them.
Shaun goes into Ryan's room and tells him he will be tested for encephalitis and heart problems. While talking, Ryan is rubbing his neck and Shaun examines his shoulders. On his shoulders and back there are red bumps, which are no symptoms of encephalitis or a heart problem.
Grace is told what problem caused her to crash and that her cancer is progressing faster than they thought. They push her to terminate but Grace doesn't want to do anything that won't be safe for the baby. Marcus says there's a surgery that will clear almost all of the cancer but there's a 30 percent chance of miscarriage. Amanda tells Grace to do the surgery that rids her of all the cancer but Grace wants to do the chemo. Grace doesn't care if she lives but she wants the baby to reach viability.
Alex finds Morgan and he tells her that he went through some of Morgan's cases. He says he went through them because of how Morgan reacted. He talks about Nira Joseph, a patient that Morgan treated and caused to go half-blind. They argue over the care Nira could've gotten that would've saved her eyesight but Morgan argues she made the right choice medically. Alex says the choice should've been Nira's but Morgan made the best choice that got her closer to having a say over the clinic.
Shaun suggests that Ryan has an autoimmune marker. Alex tries to talk about his fired friends but Morgan defends Marcus saying what he supports doesn't matter. Morgan tells Alex to face reality as someone has to keep the hospital running, even if that person is Salen. He continues to argue against Salen and brings up Nira's case. Morgan says he is being unfair and Alex yells at Marcus. Marcus brings the conversation back to the case and tells them to treat Ryan. Alex, however, says he will be quitting after treating his current patients.
Lea and Shaun meet for lunch. Lea discusses getting a job downtown and how they can have a new place to meetup for lunch. Shaun wants to join Lea in her plan as he is the poster boy and he can make a difference. Lea doesn't agree as Shaun is almost done with his residency. Shaun wants to help those who have stood up for him a lot. Lea agrees and Shaun looks happy about it.
Jordan and Asher prep the OR for Grace in silence. Asher asks for Jordan to make fun of him as he hates the silence. Jordan tells Asher that she told him several times that she doesn't want to get involved and Asher is acting like Jordan is afraid of a fight. She says she had to fight hard to be in the residency program and she doesn't have the same luxuries as Asher. Asher admits he never thought of it that way and apologizes. Jordan realizes who Grace is fighting for. Even though Grace claimed to not have kids, Jordan and Asher realize that before she became a surrogate she had to have given birth before.
Jordan talks to Grace about Willem and says it wasn't her fault. Grace believes it is as she is a mother who lost track of Willem, her son, at a playground. Grace was 19 at the time and Jordan believes she overwhelmed. Grace says she wasn't overwhelmed, she just wasn't paying attention as she was arguing with her boyfriend. When she turned her back, Willem was involved in a crash. Because of this, Grace became a surrogate to give babies to those who deserve them. Jordan doesn't think that Grace should kill herself over the incident and she has more value than just being a surrogate. Being a surrogate is what Grace lives for ever since losing Willem. Asher calls her selfish as the situation isn't just about Grace but also about Amanda who loves Grace. Grace thinks she's helping Amanda but Asher doesn't believe that Amanda wants the price of her child to be Grace's life. Jordan wants to do the surgery that partially removes the mass as Amanda will get the baby and Grace has a better chance at living. Grace agrees to this.
Audrey is packing up her office with two guards watching her. Marcus walks into her office and apologizes for Salen threatening Audrey, saying it was unnecessary. When Audrey tells Marcus that she's not done yet, he grows concerned as Salen can destroy Audrey's career but only if Marcus allows her to, which Audrey points out. He calls her sexist and claims he has no control over Salen but Audrey doesn't want him to control Salen, he wants him to take a stand against her. He believes he has been taking a stand from the inside and Audrey could've helped him but Audrey believes Salen started the fight.
Ryan says he's feeling sick as Shaun examines his. One of Ryan's eyes have gone yellow meaning his liver is having a problem. Shaun wants to do a scan of Ryan's body as well as Dom's.
Morgan has brought Nira in for a checkup on her eyes. She says that Nira's vision has improved and Nira is relieved. Morgan asks how Nira is doing and Nira tells Morgan the things she has lost since her vision has gone bad. Morgan apologizes but Nira is glad her life has changed as she's much more happy and involved in her family's lives.
Shaun informs Ryan that he has liver cancer and the tumor caused his immune system to attack his organs. Dom asks if he gave Ryan cancer and Shaun says it's likely but Dom's donation was to his benefit as Dom doesn't have cancer. Ryan wants to know what he should do next but the tumor has spread and they can't fully treat it. They can treat as much as they can but Ryan will only have months to live.
At Aaron's home, Aaron tells Shaun that if he goes with the plan Salen will fire him and attack him publicly. Shaun doesn't care, much to Aaron's annoyance as Salen has a lot to use against Shaun. Shaun wants to know why he can't risk his career but the others can. Aaron explains the others can risk their career because they're not as exceptional as Shaun but Shaun says he is an adult and can make his own decisions. Aaron asks what Shaun will do if he can't be a surgeon but being a surgeon isn't the most important thing to Shaun. Losing Aaron, Audrey, Alex, and Lea from the hospital is what's most important as they are the reason he enjoys working at St. Bonaventure. Aaron finally agrees to let Shaun help but they need to write a speech. Shaun doesn't want Aaron's help because of Aaron's speech at Shaun's engagement party.
Jordan and Asher operate on Grace's cancer with Marcus' help. Grace and the baby start to crash.
Morgan tells Ryan he is ready for surgery. Ryan reassures Dom that the surgery will go great but Dom isn't as sure. He apologizes to Ryan because he feels guilty for giving him cancer after Ryan has been nothing but nice. Ryan tells Dom that he got to witness so much because of Dom. Dom promises to be the best godfather to Ryan's daughter.
Grace continues to crash and Asher suggests they do a hysterectomy so Grace doesn't bleed out. Jordan suggests a new way to treat the tumor but it wouldn't keep the baby safe. Asher offers a modified version of the treatment that will keep the baby safe and Marcus agrees.
Morgan goes to the lockers to find Alex packing up his locker. She tells him she wants to go public about Nira's treatment and the role Salen played in it. She believes it will make an impression on the investors. Alex worries that Morgan will ruin her career but Morgan wants to make it right. He doesn't think she can make it right but she's going in the right direction.
Marcus finds Salen and Salen gives him a list of people who are expected to speak at the Pension Fund. The list is Aaron Glassman, Audrey Lim, Shaun Murphy, Asher Wolke, Alex Park, and now Morgan Reznick. Marcus tells Salen that he thinks those who are speaking out, are right and that they should meet with them. Salen refuses to hire them back but Marcus wants her to hear their suggestions. He worries Salen will lose more than the hospital. Salen tells him she has to get ready and she leaves.
The doctors are waiting in the lounge to give their speech and Jordan joins them. Shaun and Lea hold hands. Salen walks into the lounge area and Marcus approaches her. The doctors watch nervously as Marcus hands Salen a folder that has oppo research in it. Salen laugh as she's sure Marcus has nothing on her but the folder has research on Marcus. He says if she goes through with the deal, she will have to destroy Marcus. He tells her to walk away from the deal. Marcus hands Salen a paper to sign and a pen then apologizes. Salen signs the paper and tells him the hospital is now his problem. Salen leaves the room.
Morgan and Alex are returning home and Alex says he will sleep at his place. Morgan hands him an admission of misconduct and tells him she sent a copy of the paper to Nira. Alex hopes that Morgan didn't do it for him but Morgan says she did it because of who she is when she is with Alex. Alex decides to not go home to his place.
At the hospital, Salen's equipment is being removed when Audrey walks in. She receives applauds from employees and a nod from Marcus.
Grace and Amanda look at an ultrasound of the baby.
Ryan's wife is not at the hospital with their daughter.
Lea and Shaun unpack Lea's things in her office.
Marcus is now president of the hospital and he sits in his office.
Cast[]
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Guest Starring[]
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Trivia[]
- This episode originally shared a title with the Season 1 episode Sacrifice, however, later it was changed to Cheat Day.
- This is the last apperance of Salen Morrison.
- It's mentioned that Mateo Rendón Osma quit after disappearing and Lim breaking up with him.
- After Salen leaves, all of the doctors are rehired and Ethicure's equipment is removed from the hospital. However, Marcus Andrews becomes the hospital president again instead of Aaron Glassman.
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