A day filled with traumas leaves the ER packed. Under pressure from his wife, Chief Resident Dr. Mark Greene considers leaving the ER to join a private practice that would give him a much higher salary. When a building collapses, multiple casualties are brought in. New medical students start their ER rotation, among them John Carter, an inexperienced third-year student. As the day continues, Dr. Peter Benton operates on a patient with an aortic aneurysm, a procedure normally performed by senior staff. Head nurse Carol Hathaway is brought into the ER after a suicide attempt.