LOS ANGELES — They may only play doctors on TV, but they're giving real-life help to hospitals that have taken a hit from the coronavirus outbreak.
The Fox TV medical series “The Resident” has donated some of its on-set masks and gowns to a hospital in Atlanta, where it shoots, and the ABC show “The Good Doctor” is moving to do the same in its home base of Vancouver, Canada.
“To the entire team @theresidentonfox, thank you for this incredibly generous donation of #PPE from your set, including gowns, masks, gloves, and all the things our healthcare workers need to provide safe care for our community during #COVID19,” Dr. Karen Law of Grady Memorial Hospital said on Instagram, along with a photo of boxes of the donated gear.
"Grey's Anatomy" and "Station 19" also confirmed they would be donating masks.
"At 'Station 19,' we were lucky enough to have about 300 of the coveted N95 masks which we donated to our local fire station. They were tremendously grateful. At 'Grey’s Anatomy,' we have a back-stock of gowns and gloves which we are donating as well," Krista Vernoff, executive producer of ABC's "Grey's Anatomy" and "Station 19" told "Good Morning America" in a statement. "We are all overwhelmed with gratitude for our healthcare workers during this incredibly difficult time, and in addition to these donations, we are doing our part to help them by staying home."
Show representatives confirmed that the gear came from them, and representatives of “The Good Doctor” said they were in talks with government officials in Vancouver about what is needed at hospitals there.
“I had a serious discussion with the residents about how, though supplies are low, a magical shipment of masks is unlikely to arrive,” Law said. “And yet, a magical shipment of masks DID arrive, in the form of this very generous gesture."
The coronavirus has especially hit home for “The Good Doctor.” Actor Daniel Dae Kim, who is a producer on the show and appeared in several episodes last year, says he has tested positive for it.
Kim said in an Instagram video from his house in Hawaii that while flying home from a shoot in New York — where he was playing a doctor helping with a flu pandemic — he noticed an itch in his throat, followed by a tightness in his chest and body aches that prompted him to get tested.
Kim says he was not hospitalized and began feeling better within a few days.
“I'm not 100 percent, but I'm close,” he said.
