Doc McStuffins

Physicians are great, nurses are like hippo dolls

December 2022 – The popular Disney preschool show Doc McStuffins aired more than 130 episodes between 2012 to 2020, and it is now available on Disney+, inspiring new generations of girls to aim high and avoid nursing. The show features an African-American girl (Doc) who wants to be a physician like her mother. Doc prepares for that future by fixing her ailing toys and dolls, which come to life when she is there. Each episode sends a basic health message, usually in a narrow, physician-centric “diagnosis and treatment” framework. But wait! One of the dolls, Hallie the Hippo, is “Doc’s nurse.” At different points the Hallie character reflects most of the major nursing stereotypes, from low-skilled handmaiden to motherly angel to crusty battle-axe. Her main job often seems to be fetching the Big Book of Boo-Boos for Doc. The show’s creator has noted that she originally saw the Hallie character as a “fumbling, bumbling mess,” though the voice actress apparently brought more confidence to the role. The show has been lauded for its positive role-modeling, telling girls of color that they can become physicians. However, such a contemptuous portrayal of nursing aimed at those in their formative years is very harmful. We can do better.