At St. Denis Medical, good medicine is a delicate operation.

LOS ANGELES – Broadcast television may be littered with mockumentaries but that doesn’t mean there isn’t room for one more.

β€œWhat someone told me early on is it doesn’t matter if five people are doing a hospital comedy, just be the best show that is a hospital comedy and people will forget the rest,” says David Alan Grier. β€œWhen β€˜Die Hard’ came, action-adventure-whatever flicks were dead, and it was an old, tired genre. But when it was done well enough, it reinvented and refreshed the genre.”

The gang from "St. Denis Medical," from left: Allison Tolman as Alex, Kahyun Kim as Serena, Mekki Leeper as Matt, David Alan Grier as Ron, Kaliko Kauahi as Val, Josh Lawson as Bruce, and Wendi McLendon-Covey as Joyce.

Now, Grier is part of β€œSt. Denis Medical,” a comedy about a hospital in central Oregon.

Its administrator, played by β€œThe Goldbergs’” Wendi McLendon-Covey wants to make it a destination medical property. β€œShe’s competent,” says McLendon-Covey, β€œbut she has very unrealistic expectations.”

A hard-working staff, however, keeps St. Denis Medical (named after a decapitated bishop) plugging away, even though it could experience highs and lows all in one day.

β€œThe Office” trafficked in the mundane. β€œSt. Denis,” however, has to deal with a range of stories – from highly dramatic to absurd.

β€œWe’re really attempting to find a balance,” says Executive Producer Eric Ledgin. β€œAt the end of the day, a job is a job like any other – except this happens to be in the highest stakes place possible.”

Grier, who plays an ER doctor, is joined by Allison Tolman as a supervising nurse in the department; Mekki Leeper as a newly hired nurse; Josh Lawson as a self-important surgeon; Kaliko Kauahi as the front desk attendant; and McLendon-Covey as the executive director. They all want the hospital to succeed, but understaffing has taken its toll.

Allison Tolman, left, and Kahyun Kim work to keep "St. Denis Medical" going.

Despite her promotion, Tolman’s character can’t get away to be with her family. β€œEveryone who is visiting the hospital is in extreme circumstances,” Tolman says, β€œbut as extreme as they are they’re not extreme for us. It’s just another day and someone has a day off and somebody has a birthday. I find that really charming. Every episode has a moment where that sort of sincerity and that heartfelt core shine through.”

Learning from reality

The β€œFargo” star got a chance to see a hospital in action before shooting even started. β€œBefore I took this role, my father was very ill,” she says. β€œI went home to Texas for several months, so I was really entrenched in the hospital and the healthcare system for the first time in my life. When I got this script, it just felt like kismet. I wanted to make a half-hour comedy because that was what kept us afloat when my dad was so sick. Then, to have it be about these people who saved my father’s life… it was really a blessing.”

Grier, too, has a point of reference. His father was a noted psychiatrist; his siblings have also gone into medical fields. The script, he says, was β€œgood, well-written and intelligent. I’m familiar with the milieu.”

From left, Josh Lawson as Dr. Bruce and David Alan Grier as Dr. Ron in "St. Denis Medical."

For McLendon-Covey, who played the mom on β€œThe Goldbergs” for 10 seasons, β€œSt. Denis” represented a chance to go in another direction: β€œWhat I loved about this character is that she is not nurturing at all. Don’t come near her wanting a hug. She does not want your germs, and she cannot keep a plant alive. But she’s devoted to this hospital. That’s her baby.”

While Kauahi lugs a large cross through the hospital in an early episode, most situations aren’t that absurd.

β€œI find something really charming about the mundane in the most extreme circumstances,” Tolman says.

Fertile ground

Wendi McLendon-Covey in "St. Denis Medical."

β€œSt. Denis Medical” should work, Ledgin says, because a hospital is such a β€œstakes-y” place. β€œThere’s so much inherent drama and joy and awareness and camaraderie. It felt like such fertile ground.”

The mockumentary aspect pulls it away from other medical comedies – like β€œScrubs” – because it β€œlimits us and says we are always going to be the much more grounded version,” says Executive Producer Justin Spitzer.

When Tolman took a risk with β€œFargo,” she had no idea where it might lead. β€œI’m so blessed that I’ve been working consistently now for 10 years,” she says. β€œThe thing about success is that you never actually reach it. You’re always striving in this business. Maybe Tom Cruise is not striving anymore, but the rest of us, you’re like, β€˜Am I doing the right thing?’”

β€œSt. Denis Medical” airs on NBC beginning Nov. 12.

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Β Bruce Miller is editor of the Sioux City Journal.Β