5.07 - The Itch

She does bring a moral authority to the show and tends to be one of the few characters that challenges House. Foreman used to do that, but I find most of the time he's just incredibly arrogant and annoying. They've really failed to bring that kind of quality to the newbies. I think Cameron challenges House but I don't think she brings moral authority. In this episode, she compromised patient care twice--she cares deeply but gets overinvolved and then makes decisions based on that. It's consistent in that we've seen it all along, sometimes for positive reasons like in this ep, sometimes not so positive like Spin. Every once in a while checking in and having this storyline come up is fine, but I have no desire to have the next episode focus on the same thing. I think we've had Taub established as the one who can challenge House, but right now, as House pointed out, he's focused on saving his marriage, which changes where his energy is going. He's not going to risk his job, and neither did Cameron when she worked for House. When he ordered her to do something or she'd be fired, she did it. However, she's in a different position now and that's the benefit of where Chase and Cameron are: they don't have to put their jobs at risk to say no. The newbies, as they should be, are in a different place and will have their own arcs. To me, right now, Chase is the one actually wielding a moral authority in the show, as he has clearly defined his ability to say no when he doesn't agree with something.

jair-- totally agree about Chase. I really, really like where they've taken him. He respects House, but disagrees and says no to him without blinking an eye. House swept him out of the nest because he was ready. House was right.

I think Cameron challenges House but I don't think she brings moral authority. In this episode, she compromised patient care twice--she cares deeply but gets overinvolved and then makes decisions based on that. It's consistent in that we've seen it all along, sometimes for positive reasons like in this ep, sometimes not so positive like Spin. IMO "moral authority" doesn't mean that her position is always, always right. But she's reassuring in that she has a fairly consistent POV to recognize in a character. And that she does initiate a back and forth with House that has long been absent with the new characters. Every once in a while checking in and having this storyline come up is fine, but I have no desire to have the next episode focus on the same thing. Given that it didn't come up as a storyline everytime Cameron was on screen before, I can't see that being a problem. I think we've had Taub established as the one who can challenge House, but right now, as House pointed out, he's focused on saving his marriage, which changes where his energy is going. Makes for pretty boring television, though, for Taub to be consistently working on his mostly off-screen marriage in lieu of providing conflict which is essentially the stuff of drama. Especially when it comes in the form of House actually just telling us that this is what Taub is doing because otherwise there are no narrative or visual clues to let us know or care. He's not going to risk his job, and neither did Cameron when she worked for House. When he ordered her to do something or she'd be fired, she did it. Arguably, Cameron has done many things in defiance of House that could have risked her job: drugging George in Que Sera, running the TB -*test*-('") in TB or Not TB, proving Anica was a hypochondriac in Deception. IMO risking your job isn't simply doing what House tells you or else. It's also going around his own diagnoses and finding an alternative clue, which makes things a bit more interesting. However, she's in a different position now and that's the benefit of where Chase and Cameron are: they don't have to put their jobs at risk to say no. The newbies, as they should be, are in a different place and will have their own arcs. Poor Kutner. Over 20 episodes in and....nothing to speak of. What a waste. To me, right now, Chase is the one actually wielding a moral authority in the show, as he has clearly defined his ability to say no when he doesn't agree with something. Chase is interesting as a character, but as a dramatic device, watching him walk away from House time and again, sometimes without even a line--(and usually the culmination of his 30 seconds average of screentime) really isn't all that satisfying from a dramatic perspective.

IMO "moral authority" doesn't mean that her position is always, always right. But she's reassuring in that she has a fairly consistent POV to recognize in a character. And that she does initiate a back and forth with House that has long been absent with the new characters. To me, it's not necessarily reassuring that Cameron is still assuming she holds the moral high road but is actually reacting to her own issues, though it also doesn't ruin the episode, season series or anything else for me. But I don't miss this being the aspect of Cameron coming foward in the storyline and it didn't make this episode a winner for me. Given that it didn't come up as a storyline everytime Cameron was on screen before, I can't see that being a problem. I think it very consistently came up as her storyline in the first three seasons. And I find it annoying because Cameron usually never acknowledges there's an issue with her assumption of moral authority. It was an irritant before and if brought back consistently, it would be an irritant again. Makes for pretty boring television, though, for Taub to be consistently working on his mostly off-screen marriage in lieu of providing conflict which is essentially the stuff of drama. Especially when it comes in the form of House actually just telling us that this is what Taub is doing because otherwise there are no narrative or visual clues to let us know or care. I care about Taub and his marriage. I like the little vignettes we're getting after the focus in Adverse Events, where he got the dramatic scenes. We learned about PDH through little moments just like these. I care just as much, if not more, about Taub than Cameron. Arguably, Cameron has done many things in defiance of House that could have risked her job: drugging George in Que Sera, running the TB -*test*-('") in TB or Not TB, proving Anica was a hypochondriac in Deception. IMO risking your job isn't simply doing what House tells you or else. It's also going around his own diagnoses and finding an alternative clue, which makes things a bit more interesting. We saw Taub do that in Ugly, quite dramatically. But since House is actually fine with his team learning to do that, it's not risking one's job unless one is acting for a reason not related to doing the best for the patient. Cameron risked her job when she was determined to tell the POTW's girlfriend what she knew in Sleeping Dogs Lie, but she backed down when House ordered her not to or he'd fire her. She risked her job when she refused to make a decision on treating the patient in Informed Consent, but instead she came back on the case when House ordered her to. In this case, Taub didn't defy House's orders, but then it was a dicey call, because House did have a good reason to want the patient back in the hospital. It was ethically murky but not without a good reason that in the end would be good for the patient. There was a reason for Taub not to make this situation his hill to die on. I like that Taub does actually think through what he's doing before committing. Poor Kutner. Over 20 episodes in and....nothing to speak of. What a waste. Like Chase, Kutner lights up the screen whenever he's on--he's not a waste. We've got good backstory on him, and I suspect we'll get some development on him pretty soon. Chase's story was very spread out, too, but it was always worth it when it came. Chase is interesting as a character, but as a dramatic device, watching him walk away from House time and again, sometimes without even a line--(and usually the culmination of his 30 seconds average of screentime) really isn't all that satisfying from a dramatic perspective. I think Jesse Spencer can make every encounter he has count, and he's doing so now, too. The balance between old and new team is better this season and even when overshadowed in screentime as he was this ep with Cameron, he's still got a wonderful dramatic presence. In terms of how he's developed, he's shown very well that he will say no and mean it and that gives him a true moral authority on the show, because he thinks about things before reacting. I look forward to his storylines because I know they'll make sense to me.

Hugh_lover wrote: The cellphone DDX with Cameron when he is quizzing her about her relationship with Chase was great. It was very snappy. This exchange followed directly on House's attempt to rebuff Wilson's inquiries about the meaning of the Cuddy kiss. With this as the immediate context I think that we can clearly see House using his unquenchable curiousity about the affectionate relationships of people around him as a living white board upon which to carry out a diagnosis of his own confused heart. House is unsure about how he feels about Cuddy and uncomfortable with Wilson's suggestions. So he presses Cameron to update him on the progress of her affair with Chase, not because he cares particularly about their relationship, but as a way to measure how "normal" people do such things. He scratched again at Taub's shaky marriage for the same reason. House is always -*test*-('")ing the boundaries of what is acceptable or expected in regular families to establish a reference point for his inner conversation about his own relationships.

so true, blacktop. House doesn't know how to read his own feelings; his insight is acute regarding everyone but himself. He's confused, he doesn't know how to act -- as he once said--or sometimes even know how or what to feel. What is normal? House seems to want that, wants normal: a normal life, etc. but needs to filter what that is through his insights of others, not himself. Hugh_lover wrote: The cellphone DDX with Cameron when he is quizzing her about her relationship with Chase was great. It was very snappy. This exchange followed directly on House's attempt to rebuff Wilson's inquiries about the meaning of the Cuddy kiss. With this as the immediate context I think that we can clearly see House using his unquenchable curiousity about the affectionate relationships of people around him as a living white board upon which to carry out a diagnosis of his own confused heart. House is unsure about how he feels about Cuddy and uncomfortable with Wilson's suggestions. So he presses Cameron to update him on the progress of her affair with Chase, not because he cares particularly about their relationship, but as a way to measure how "normal" people do such things. He scratched again at Taub's shaky marriage for the same reason. House is always -*test*-('")ing the boundaries of what is acceptable or expected in regular families to establish a reference point for his inner conversation about his own relationships.

I think this episode and birthmarks were the only episodes this season where I wasn't annoyed by anyone. I thought The Itch and Birthmarks were the two episodes that felt like they could fit into seasons 1-3. Well balanced, intelligent and everyone was well written. It was House's judgement call to make, because the patient really was in critical distress, hence the phonecall to the proxy resulting in leave to go to the hospital. Clearly, the proxy had the right in dire circumstances to give leave to go to the hospital. In this case, going to the hospital was the best choice for this patient rather than reviving him at the house, as was made clear as soon as the patient was revived. He needed a pacemaker and he couldn't get one at home. The five minutes to go to the hospital was safer than reviving him at home but being unable to then give him the care he needs. What was Cameron thinking when she over ruled House? Whatever it was, she wasn't thinking it just minutes later when the patient was revived but needing care he couldn't get. Cameron didn't look to me to be proud of winning that battle. I don't know if we're disagreeing or misunderstanding each other. House didn't tell the proxy the whole truth. He led him to believe that if they did not get the patient to the hospital in 15 minutes he was going to die. The whole truth would have been "He's in cardiac arrest right now and if we keep doing CPR, he only has 15 minutes to live. But there is a defibrillator here too and if we shock him and start up his heart again, he will survive beyond that time. But I think he needs a permanent pacemaker and that needs to be done in the hospital." If the lawyer was an unbiased proxy, he would have said, "If you can revive him at home, do it and let him decide for himself if he wants to go to the hospital for a pacemaker." The patient knew the risks but he had made it very clear several times that he would rather die at home than be saved in the hospital. That's the consent part of informed consent. House knew that which is why he lied by omission. Cameron was later afraid that the patient wasn't going to survive at home but she did the right thing in terms of patient treatment. Worried doesn't mean she necessarily regretted what she had done. In the earlier incident, the patient agreed to the surgery but not to time at the hospital because of his agoraphobia. According to the original plan, he would never have known he was at the hospital. When Cuddy nixed that, he would wake up knowing he had been betrayed and that was the point Cameron couldn't cross. I think we've had Taub established as the one who can challenge House, but right now, as House pointed out, he's focused on saving his marriage, which changes where his energy is going. He's not going to risk his job, and neither did Cameron when she worked for House. Which means Taub will say something but not do anything. Cameron was willing to risk her job when she thought what House was doing was ethically wrong (as well as the episodes bailey mentioned, she was worried she would be fired in Skin Deep). The position Cameron takes is usually the AMA official ethics position, not something she pulls out of the air and it highlights how unethically House practices. When everyone is behaving unethically, what's the conflict? Or the interest? It's not enough for Taub to say "Oh, this isn't ethical" but do it anyway, they need to show not just tell. And House certainly appreciated Cameron's intelligence in figuring out about the morphine and circumventing his devious plan. One of the most common complaints about Thirteen is that she challenges House. Like Foreman, she opposes House for the sake of opposing him. She doesn't challenge him in either medical or ethical terms. She also slams the laptop on his hand, is rude to him in meetings and in front of patients, and acts like she's too good to be working for him. And that doesn't even begin to address how emotionally unstable she is with the drugs and promiscuous sex. The balance between old and new team is better this season Foreman was very much there last season. Considering that Chase an Cameron were hardly there at all, moving up from nothing isn't hard to do. The show is still vastly unbalanced with Thirteen and Huddy overwhelming it now that Wilson is back with House. I didn't mind Cameron's cranky comeback about Chase being fired because she was also reminding him, between the lines, that she had quit House's team in support of him. I thought she quit because it was time to move on and spread her wings. Nothing to do with Chase being fired.

House didn't tell the proxy the whole truth. He led him to believe that if they did not get the patient to the hospital in 15 minutes he was going to die. The whole truth would have been "He's in cardiac arrest right now and if we keep doing CPR, he only has 15 minutes to live. But there is a defibrillator here too and if we shock him and start up his heart again, he will survive beyond that time. But I think he needs a permanent pacemaker and that needs to be done in the hospital." If the lawyer was an unbiased proxy, he would have said, "If you can revive him at home, do it and let him decide for himself if he wants to go to the hospital for a pacemaker House told the proxy the truth about what was going on right then, and he knew what was medically best for the patient. They had all, including Cameron, spent the entire episode trying to get the patient to come in for his treatment, because he couldn't be treated properly at home. The only reason he was home again is that Cameron woke him up before surgery and sent him into a panic attack. House was exactly right in his assessment of what was medically best. All Cameron was able to do was shock the patient's heart into brachycardia and he needed a pacemaker to survive. I think if the proxy had been told that was the likely outcome, he'd have still said yes. The patient knew the risks but he had made it very clear several times that he would rather die at home than be saved in the hospital. But clearly that was not what the proxy thought was the best call and he had the right to make a different one, because when the choice was die at home or be saved at the hospital, he said yes to House's call to take him to the hospital. As it turned out, the lead poisoning was affecting the patient's mental outlook, and he was not at all certain he wanted to die rather than leave the house once he was cured, so Cameron should have been focusing on the medicine, as House was. Cameron was later afraid that the patient wasn't going to survive at home but she did the right thing in terms of patient treatment. When House told her she could take her job back so he could fire her, as they faced the fact that the patient had brachycardia and was still dying and there was nothing they could do, she looked pretty shaken to me, and when House said he hoped the patient would survive so she wouldn't feel guilty for the rest of her life, she ran to Chase and tried to browbeat him into doing surgery she knew medically he couldn't do. She knew she'd made the wrong call. Which means Taub will say something but not do anything. Cameron was willing to risk her job when she thought what House was doing was ethically wrong (as well as the episodes bailey mentioned, she was worried she would be fired in Skin Deep). The position Cameron takes is usually the AMA official ethics position, not something she pulls out of the air and it highlights how unethically House practices. We know Taub will do more when he feels he has the right, as in Ugly. Cameron didn't fight House on every move, and when she did, she was frequently wrong. Sometimes because she was just looking at the surface of something, like this episode, and sometimes because she's indulging her own issues, as in Spin and Sleeping Dogs Lie. It says more to me about her than House and always has. Don't miss it, either. Like Foreman, she opposes House for the sake of opposing him. She doesn't challenge him in either medical or ethical terms. Mileage varies here. Sometimes she opposes him for ethics, which was what the laptop issue was about. Sometimes the case has resonated personally, as in the Christmas episode. At least with Thirteen, I have hopes that she'll look at her own motivations, which is never Cameron's strong point.

Poor Kutner. Over 20 episodes in and....nothing to speak of. What a waste. I still suspect that part of the reason we haven't seen much of Kutner is because of Kal spending so much of his time working on the 2008 campaign. I think we'll get to see a lot more of him soon, or at least I hope so. I think that Kutner's personality can add some zing to the show.

House told the proxy the truth about what was going on right then, and he knew what was medically best for the patient. They had all, including Cameron, spent the entire episode trying to get the patient to come in for his treatment, because he couldn't be treated properly at home. The only reason he was home again is that Cameron woke him up before surgery and sent him into a panic attack. House was exactly right in his assessment of what was medically best. All Cameron was able to do was shock the patient's heart into brachycardia and he needed a pacemaker to survive. I think if the proxy had been told that was the likely outcome, he'd have still said yes. House said that if they didn't get the patient to a hospital in the next fifteen minutes he was going to die because that's how long they could keep CPR going. That's only true if there is no other option. There was. It's typical House to give half-truths and wrong impressions to get what he wants but that doesn't make it ethically right. Maybe Three Stories gave people a wrong impression of what a medical proxy is supposed to do. They are supposed to do what the patient wishes done in the event that he/she cannot communicate his/her wishes. If the proxy had said 'yes, go to the hospital' after being told that the patient could be revived at home, he would have been a bad proxy. Since the cause of the illness was lead poisoning rather than cardiac damage House had thought it was, I thought no permanent pacemaker was required. Therefore, the patient didn't have to go to the hospital in the end after all. But clearly that was not what the proxy thought was the best call and he had the right to make a different one, because when the choice was die at home or be saved at the hospital, he said yes to House's call to take him to the hospital. As it turned out, the lead poisoning was affecting the patient's mental outlook, and he was not at all certain he wanted to die rather than leave the house once he was cured, so Cameron should have been focusing on the medicine, as House was. The actual choice wasn't to die at home or be saved at the hospital; the proxy said yes because House mislead him. And as House said, the lead poisoning was not causing his agoraphobia. Therefore it did not cause his refusal to go to the hospital. We will have to agree to disagree with whether Cameron made the right call or not. She made the only call she could based on her oath as a doctor. House doesn't, he doesn't care about promises or deals with patients (e.g. Informed Consent) or how ethical what he does is (e.g. Control), he does whatever he wants to get where he wants to be. But in order to make that effective to the audience, he needs someone who will logically give the other side and act on those convictions. No one has in the seasons 4 and 5 until now. When House gets to steamroll his way through everything, it's a less intelligent or interesting show. Mileage varies here. Sometimes she opposes him for ethics, which was what the laptop issue was about. Sometimes the case has resonated personally, as in the Christmas episode. At least with Thirteen, I have hopes that she'll look at her own motivations, which is never Cameron's strong point. She slammed the laptop on House's hand because she thought he was playing instead of paying attention. She did her superior act yet again in this episode, treating House as if he's a badly behaved little boy. I have yet to see her act on a more ethically responsible position than House; like Foreman and Taub, she's rude to him going beyond them to insulting and disrespectful but she never put her money where her mouth is, she's never any better nor does she ever try to be. Cameron looks at her own motivations, she just doesn't do a mea culpa about her crush on House which is what it seems many people expect of her. Wilson doesn't do a mea culpa for enabling House or Cuddy for all the times House has unnecessarily endangered patients and she hasn't taken him to task. Cameron may not have as many patient anvils as Thirteen has (thank goodness) but she's not as screwed up as Thirteen is either. And I think one of the differences between Cameron and Thirteen is that Cameron actually learned from her anvils (e.g. Acceptance,Skin Deep, Informed Consent). She grew greatly over the first three seasons on the show and not because she now listens to what Chase tells her. I hope Thirteen will eventually because otherwise this will drag on forever but she's learned nothing so far from season 4 or DCE or Lucky Thirteen this season.

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