To my recollection, doctor-soaps began way back in the '70s, along with lawyer-soaps. I remember some shit called Trapper John, M.D. Women loved them, maybe because a doctor is more of an eligible bachelor than a cop. Men hated them because pushing a gurney down a corridor is no substitute for a good car-chase. Unlike detective shows, which took a whole episode to solve a case, hospital dramas could feature several storylines in one half-hour segment. Cop-shows caught up with CHiPs which featured two California biker cops, a Spic with a dazzling smile and a faggot who was pissed because he expected to be the star of the show, not the Spic. Hill St. Blues was essentially a hospital soap with cops.