Doctor*ology: MUHC specialists featured in new documentary series

A new medical documentary series filmed in Montreal will premiere on Discovery channel this Friday, March 2, at 8:30 p.m. ET with a five-episode marathon.

This 13-part series, produced by Galafilm, uses a clever blend of slapstick comedy, interviews with medical experts and behind-the-scenes hospital tours to explain specialties ranging from anesthesiology to urology.

The slapstick is provided by Canadian screen icon Leslie Nielsen (The Naked Gun and Airplane) playing a retired doctor and actor David Lawrence playing his nephew.

MUHC specialists as well as colleagues from the Jewish General Hospital and the Institut de cardiologie provide the medical expertise.

Director General and CEO of the MUHC Arthur T. Porter described the series as an innovative approach to patient education. "With its mixture of humour and solid medical information, the series breaks new ground in reaching out to a lay audience to demystify medical science.

"The Galafilm crew was a fixture around our hospitals for much of last year as some 25 of our medical specialists, technicians and therapists provided expert content for Doctor*ology. It was a novel experience for many of us and we really enjoyed the opportunity," he added. Dr. Porter makes a cameo appearance with Leslie Nielsen in the Dermatology episode.

Series producer Shauna Patterson commended MUHC staff for their cooperation. "Not only were they knowledgeable in their fields of medicine, they are also wonderful teachers with very good senses of humour."

Following the premiere of five episodes on Friday, March 2, other episodes will be broadcast on consecutive Fridays from March 9 through April 27. The series will also be broadcast on the U.S. Health network later in the season. For more program details go to www.ctvmedia.ca/discovery.

About the McGill University Health Centre (MUHC)
The McGill University Health Centre (MUHC) is a comprehensive academic health institution with an international reputation for excellence in clinical programs, research and teaching. The MUHC is a merger of five teaching hospitals affiliated with the Faculty of Medicine at McGill University — the Montreal Children’s, Montreal General, Royal Victoria, and Montreal Neurological Hospitals, as well as the Montreal Chest Institute. Building on the tradition of medical leadership of the founding hospitals, the goal of the MUHC is to provide patient care based on the most advanced knowledge in the health care field, and to contribute to the development of new knowledge.

For further information: