A rape victim is admitted, who managed to hold onto part of her attacker; Izzie has difficulty with a patient who cannot speak English; Meredith becomes concerned about a sick baby.
Izzie and Cristina are assigned a close-to-brain-dead John Doe who may be a viable candidate for organ donation, and helpful to George's patient, who needs a new liver. Meanwhile, Meredith and Alex butt heads over a patient of their own.
Alex uses Izzie's modeling against her, and her last ad causes a patient to reject her care. Meredith finds parallels between a patient and her mother, and Christina must deal with a hospital-savvy patient.
Meredith worries she did something wrong during a heart bypass, an error in a past procedure is discovered, putting a staff member's conduct under scrutiny, while a party thrown by Izzie to introduce her boyfriend becomes a fiasco.
A woman with a massive tumor is admitted, with all the surgeons required to scrub in. In their absence, Meredith is assigned a patient with Parkinson's and, because Alex's pager is not working, Izzie is left in charge of the floor herself.
Izzie and George find out about Meredith and Derek, while Cristina makes a discovery of her own. George thinks an anesthesiologist is drinking on the job, and Meredith deals with a young girl who has had illegal surgery.
Meredith wants to learn more about Derek, but he remains cagey. Meanwhile, a supposedly psychic patient proves bothersome, Alex must convince a young girl to agree to a life saving operation, and Cristina is conflicted about her pregnancy.
George finally gets laid but gets syphilis. It's rampant among staff. Surgeon Webber is losing his sight. He wants Shepherd to operate secretly. A male patient has an ovary. A lifesaving autopsy's performed without consent.
Meredith, shattered by revelations, is forced to work with Addison, Joe collapses at the bar, Cristina has some pretty shattering news of her own, and Alex starts working on Izzie.
A family is admitted after being involved in a car crash, but there is more to them than meets the eye. Meanwhile, Bailey and her team deal with a strange case, and relationship woes plague Meredith, Cristina and George.
Meredith is horrified when her mother is admitted, and everyone is concerned when Cristina collapses in the operating room. Meanwhile, Addison is determined to save a very sick baby.
Cristina is determined to get back to work, and despite not being fully recovered, she manages to crack an odd case. Meanwhile, Addison offers to help Bailey with a complicated surgery, and Alex receives important news.
A storm rages, causing power outages and jamming the elevator, trapping George and Alex inside with a vulnerable patient. Meanwhile, Meredith and Derek arrange a religious ritual for a young woman, and Cristina deals with an unusual case.
A train wreck brings in multiple casualties, leaving Meredith hanging for her answer. Meanwhile, Alex finds working without his mojo a disheartening experience, and Cristina searches high and low for a missing appendage.
Derek reluctantly attends marriage counseling with Addison, while Meredith, Izzie and Cristina steal a patient with an unusual problem. Alex helps a young patient gain her independence, and Cristina thinks Bailey knows about her and Burke.
Friends of Derek and Addison come from New York for a preventative surgery that causes discord among both couples. Meanwhile, George helps a man who has fallen from a roof, and Bailey delivers news to the Chief.
Thanksgiving sends the occupants of Meredith's house in different directions: Meredith escapes to the hospital, George goes hunting with his family, and Izzie throws a dinner to which it appears no one is coming.
Meredith's one night stand causes complications when he shows up at the hospital with an embarrassing problem. Meanwhile, Burke tries to push Cristina toward the next step, and Alex's problems affect his performance.
The mother of the quints blames herself. Meanwhile, Izzy becomes attached to her patient, Karev must face the consequences of his actions, and Cristina takes care of an inmate desperate to stay at the hospital.
Christmas hits Seattle, with Izzie caring for a man who fell from his roof while hanging decorations. Meanwhile, Cristina helps perform a heart transplant on a depressed boy, and George has to contend with the family from Hell.