After Beverly's reassignment to another floor, new supervising nurse Patsy De La Serda arrives at the ward and immediately clashes with the other staff members; Jenna's position as the ward's director of medicine is made permanent, much to her dismay; Varla Pounder, a patient suffering from bipolar disorder, causes trouble for the staff.

A homeless patient is "dumped" on the ward; unhappy with Patsy's new campaign, Jenna attempts to replace it with an aerobic fitness program; Phyllis Marmatan, the daughter of a patient with cancer, discovers that her mother's chemotherapy has been discontinued; Dawn and Patsy's relationship trouble continues.