'Saving Hope's' Julia Taylor Ross makes her first incision
When we first met Maggie, she was uncertain and unsure of herself, seeking Alex’s approval on just about every decision she was making, but now, she’s assertive and confident…even thwarting the orders of a senior doctor.
“It’s a really big arc for her,” says actress Julia Taylor Ross. “Episode 105 is her first real moment at taking a risk and really saving a patient on her own.
“She sees something that’s going wrong, she kind of oversteps another doctor’s authority, which is a little bit risky . . . it’s all a bit worrying!”
Taylor Ross is excited about exploring the problem solving side to the medical world and about exploring Maggie’s development as a healer. “I think she’s a bit of a risk taker and she has a lot of ambition and it’s about asserting that and how smart and gutsy she is. She gains confidence with each interaction with her patients and with each successful patient interaction, you get stronger, just like anything.”
Though Dr. Melanda Tolliver doesn’t believe her patient, John Doe, is suffering from any complications, and warns Maggie to leave her patient alone and wait for the antibiotics to kick in, Maggie’s hunch is that his distended abdomen is the potentially disastrous Abdominal Compartment Syndrome.
When John Doe begins to go into distress, and Melanda is nowhere to be found, Maggie takes the situation into her own hands and performs emergency surgery, essentially saving the patient’s life.
“As a surgeon, the first time (making an incision) must be an unbelievable moment,” reflects Taylor Ross. And as an actress, she’s just as excited about cutting. “It’s probably the thing I’ve been looking forward to most in this episode!” she says.
She admits she did a lot of research to prepare for the cutting scene. “Lots of gory research!” she says with a laugh. “If you look ‘abdominal compartment syndrome’ up on Google, it’s pretty graphic! It’s all guts and stuff coming out.”
But beyond the bloody details, Taylor Ross also looked into what it would feel like to use a scalpel. “I found out that there’s three layers, the skin, then the fat, then the fascia, this tendon-y fabric that houses all your organs. She has to lift the fascia and cut it so she won’t cut into the organs,” she notes.
“It’s really intense. I think Maggie loves that part of it. I know I do!”
“It’s a really big arc for her,” says actress Julia Taylor Ross. “Episode 105 is her first real moment at taking a risk and really saving a patient on her own.
“She sees something that’s going wrong, she kind of oversteps another doctor’s authority, which is a little bit risky . . . it’s all a bit worrying!”
Taylor Ross is excited about exploring the problem solving side to the medical world and about exploring Maggie’s development as a healer. “I think she’s a bit of a risk taker and she has a lot of ambition and it’s about asserting that and how smart and gutsy she is. She gains confidence with each interaction with her patients and with each successful patient interaction, you get stronger, just like anything.”
Though Dr. Melanda Tolliver doesn’t believe her patient, John Doe, is suffering from any complications, and warns Maggie to leave her patient alone and wait for the antibiotics to kick in, Maggie’s hunch is that his distended abdomen is the potentially disastrous Abdominal Compartment Syndrome.
When John Doe begins to go into distress, and Melanda is nowhere to be found, Maggie takes the situation into her own hands and performs emergency surgery, essentially saving the patient’s life.
“As a surgeon, the first time (making an incision) must be an unbelievable moment,” reflects Taylor Ross. And as an actress, she’s just as excited about cutting. “It’s probably the thing I’ve been looking forward to most in this episode!” she says.
She admits she did a lot of research to prepare for the cutting scene. “Lots of gory research!” she says with a laugh. “If you look ‘abdominal compartment syndrome’ up on Google, it’s pretty graphic! It’s all guts and stuff coming out.”
But beyond the bloody details, Taylor Ross also looked into what it would feel like to use a scalpel. “I found out that there’s three layers, the skin, then the fat, then the fascia, this tendon-y fabric that houses all your organs. She has to lift the fascia and cut it so she won’t cut into the organs,” she notes.
“It’s really intense. I think Maggie loves that part of it. I know I do!”
About Lindsay Zier-Vogel
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Lindsay Zier-Vogel
Lindsay Zier-Vogel has been working for CTV.ca and covering So You Think You Can Dance Canada since 2008. In addition to interviewing the famed American choreographer Bill T. Jones and Canadian prima ballerina Karen Kain, Lindsay’s highlights include criss-crossing Canada on four SYTYCDC audition tours and covering the Juno Awards.
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