‘Breathless’ Season 1 Recap And Ending Explained: Did Patricia End Her Crusade Against Dr. Moa?

Breathless is a brand-new Netflix series that covers the life of the healthcare professionals working for a Valencia-based government hospital in Spain. There is a lot to take away from the stories as the doctors’ lives get intertwined with their work. Breathless is also about accepting one another for our flaws and moving ahead in life, while the makers of the show treat doctors as humans who make mistakes as well.

Spoilers Ahead

Did Dr. Moa go on strike right from the operation table?

Breathless began with Dr. Moa of Joaquim Sorola Hospital in the operating room performing a major surgery with Dr. Pilar on a certain patient named Patricia. It turns out the surgery was crucial for Patricia’s survival. At the same time, other doctors, residents, and nurses announced an indefinite strike for better work life balance for the doctors. As the clock struck twelve, Dr. Moa insisted on abandoning the operation theater, but Dr. Pilar refused to do so as the surgery was important, and it had to be finished in a way that would not harm the patient lying in front of them. Dr. Moa was given a choice between the oath he took as a doctor or the strike he had proposed just that morning.

Who were the staff at the government hospital in Valencia?

Joaquim Sorola Hospital, as mentioned above, was a government hospital run by Dr. Lluís Jornet Blasco, who was the director of the establishment as well. He was Dr. Leo’s ex-husband, and they had a son named Hugo together. Dr. Moa was the best oncologist in the country, who worked for the government hospital instead of choosing any other private establishment that would happily take him. Biel was the resident doctor assigned to work with Dr. Moa. Biel was a smart chap who was having an affair with Dr. Jesica and slowly falling in love with her. 

Dr. Jesica wanted to keep it casual as she was in a relationship with Dr. Lluis. She is also the older sister to Rodrigo, who was assigned to work with her during his residency program with the same hospital. May Sader and Rocio were resident doctors, and they were in a relationship. May was pregnant, and she and Rocio had planned to raise a child together in Germany, where they planned to move after their residency was over. May was assisting Dr. Leo, a gynecologist who was not happy to know of her pregnancy. Enrique, aka Queque, was completing his residency in the hospital as well, but he had a drug addiction problem, which led to several issues concerning a party he attended where he supplied some stuff that caused an overdose to the person who consumed it. 

What was Patricia diagnosed with?

Patricia was the president of the Valencian community who was admitted to Sorola Hospital after a small accident. After a thorough checkup, Dr. Moa asked her to carry out a biopsy as he sensed a lump in her breast. Patricia was initially not keen on getting any tests done at the hospital she was at because of her crusade against them and her plan to privatize it. Ultimately, she was informed that Dr. Moa was the best oncologist in the country and only he would be able to help her. The results revealed she indeed had breast cancer, but since they’d caught it early, they would be able to begin chemotherapy to get rid of it. Patricia was worried about her campaign and her public image. She went ahead and revealed her diagnosis to the media and the public, alongside her plans to be treated by Dr. Moa at Solor Hospital. 

Was Rodrigo in trauma?

Rodrigo was a resident working with his sister Dr. Jesica.  He was also a social media influencer with a large following. As a doctor doing his residency, he was attending to a young girl who was suffering from malnutrition while her mother was in denial about it. The girl was brought in again by her brother as the girl’s health had deteriorated. The brother forged his mother’s signature and consented to an operation that was to be carried out by Rodrigo’s sister Jesica. In the middle of the operation, she was called to be a part of another operation, and she left the procedure to Rodrigo. 

As a rookie, he made a mistake that led to the death of the young girl on the operation table. This had a severe damaging effect on his mental health, as he blamed himself for the death. Even though he briefly recovered from the trauma, the girl’s mother blamed him for the death on visiting the hospital, telling the young man he could expect a potential lawsuit against him. Out of pain and guilt, Rodrigo livestreamed his suicide by jumping off the terrace of the hospital. He ended up in a coma and succumbed to his injuries a few days later, devastating his sister Jesica. 

Who was Dr. Pilar looking for?

Dr. Pilar’s son Oscar was admitted for an overdose by Enrique, who worked as a resident in the same place. However, he asked his colleague Rocio to stay quiet about his involvement in causing the overdose. Dr. Pilar was livid, as she was sure her son had been forcefully drugged, and she was looking for the person that put Oscar in a dangerous situation. Enrique also reveals that he had not used protection during his intercourse with Oscar, and was forced to test himself for HIV. His results came negative, while Oscar’s were positive. Oscar was slowly recovering from the overdose, which had left him needing surgery as well, and he had become good friends with Enrique as he remembered the resident calling the ambulance and being with him till he was admitted. Both had begun to hang out together and had gotten physically intimate; however, Enrique was worried he could contract HIV. 

Did Dr. Leo give a false report about a rape victim?

Dr. Leo was approached by Joana, a woman who claimed to have been sexually assaulted under the influence of narcotics. She unfortunately had taken a shower before filing a complaint, which could possibly have erased all the DNA evidence from her body regarding the assault. Dr. Leo felt bad for her and helped her by submitting a false report that amplified the evidence of assault. The false report led to the arrest of Dr. Leo’s son, Hugo, who claimed he was innocent. She and her ex-husband Lluis were by Hugo’s side and believed his word, but the girl and the report would tell another story. Joana stuck to her statement about being assaulted when she was high on narcotics. May Sader, who worked under Dr. Leo, was asked to testify, as she was a witness when the report against Hugo was made. May did not give away anything, as she knew the report was false and Dr. Leo was petrified; she was risking everything she had in her life now because of it. 

Why did Dr. Moa and his supporters go on strike?

Doctor Rodrigo’s death was caused by many factors. Since there was a shortage of staff in the hospital, Jesica had to take over another procedure and leave her brother in charge of the little girl. The girl’s death led to a chain reaction, which ended with Rodrigo’s suicide. The hospital also felt the need for more doctors in the hospital when food poisoning cases from a local fair overwhelmed them and led to many deaths. Dr. Moa was fed up with the local government not allocating any budget for appointing new doctors despite the fact the government hospital was facing countless problems, including working nonstop for hours without any break that leads to constant exhaustion and trauma. 

Trauma and non-availability of help led to Rodrigo’s suicide, which triggered Dr. Moa to take stern steps, and he was joined by half of the staff, including Rocio, Enrique, and Biel. The hospital directors, Dr. Lluis, along with Dr. Pilar, and May, were not in favor of the strike, as their core job was to help the patients at any given point. 

What happened to Patricia after the first surgery?

The strike was only being discussed among the staff, and discreetly at that, to make sure there was no panic amongst the patients, especially Patricia, who was being treated for breast cancer. Initially she was informed she would only need chemotherapy, and that she would be given one last dose before Dr. Moa and his team go on strike. Since Pilar was the head of the surgery department, she chose to take over Patricia’s case and insisted on surgery to remove a tumor, which she spotted in her reports. Dr. Moa chose to carry out the surgery for the sake of Patricia, although she had made him and Biel promise she wouldn’t have to lose her breast at any given point. 

It was during the surgery that the clock struck twelve, and Dr. Moa was ready to walk out with his team, including Biel. This scenario connects to the first scene of the show. Despite Dr. Pilar reminding him of the oath they took in, Dr. Moa walked out, but Biel decided to stay for the sake of Patricia. After Dr. Moa’s exit, the operation did not go as planned, as Dr. Pilar had to resort to surgically removing Patricia’s left breast to remove a large chunk of tumor. This caused an uproar in the circuit that favored Patricia, who was livid at Dr. Moa for abandoning her, which was negligence on his part. 

How did the doctors break the strike?

Dr. Moa and his strike began with full power, as many from the Joaquim Solor hospital had joined him to fight against the government run by Patricia, who was not willing to support government hospitals, which were meant only for the benefit of the people, unlike private ones, which Patricia was backing. Patricia was also looking at the strike from a political point of view, as she was not keen on losing her seat as a result of it. She was initially keen on making amends as the strike was spreading like wildfire. Several other government hospitals had also gone on strike, which meant Patricia was ready to make a negotiation, but not before they were informed the health secretary had agreed to sit down with the protesters to make a peaceful deal that would not affect the patients going forward. 

Did Patricia end her crusade against Dr. Moa?

The doctors ended the strike, and all the staff at Solor Hospital went back to their duties. The warring between Dr. Moa and Patricia went public as both were adamant about their viewpoints. Dr. Moa was threatened he would lose his license to practice because of the negligence that happened on his exit midway through Patricia’s surgery. The constant warring back and forth between Patricia and Dr. Moa only made matters worse as they faced each other on live television for a debate. After having lost a part of her body due to Dr. Moa and his strike, Patricia brought up the negligence matter on the live television while Dr. Moa advocated trusting every family doctor out there instead of falling for the propaganda laid out by Patricia to back the rich investors in the healthcare sector. 

Patricia eventually had to send goons to beat him up to make him stop his crusade against privatization. Dr. Moa was hospitalized, and she revealed she knew of his wife passing away due to cancer, and him being accused of assisted suicide. Patricia, however, was given the option of choosing an experimental treatment, but that was not easily available thanks to the laws put in place by Patricia and her government. 

What happened on the day of the severe storm in Valencia?

Patricia was trying to figure out how she could save herself as there was political pressure for her to leave her post due to her health concerns and take a break. She had her spells, which did not help her campaign. Patricia was not keen on resigning, but her health was deteriorating because of the stress of the job. She was in a dilemma as she felt there were people in her party who wanted to sideline her, but her health was becoming a major concern in the campaign as they did not want to risk a by-election on her passing. Amidst all this, there was a huge storm that hit the city of Valencia, and the Joaquim Solor Hospital was filling up, as the number of casualties kept increasing. 

Dr. Pilar had learned that Enrique was the person who had given her son the narcotics, and ever since, she was not keen on having him around. Oscar was a drug addict, but he did not have any control over his faculties once he was high. He and Enrique were falling in love. Oscar showed up at the hospital high amidst the storm. Enrique wanted him to stay put or get back home, but Oscar felt he did not trust him, just like his mother, and walked away in the rain. 

A terrified Enrique let Dr. Pilar knew about Oscar’s condition, and she initially blamed him. Soon she had a breakdown and rescued her words as she claimed Oscar had been a drug addict since age fifteen, and she could not do anything to help him then as well. Joana’s case comes back to haunt Dr. Leo, as she is willing to take the blame by claiming she falsified the report. This is when Hugo admitted to having raped Joana, as he did not want his mother to face prison time because of him. Joana, however, refused to take back her statement and wanted Hugo to plead guilty. Eventually Hugo agreed to plead guilty. Patricia, due to her deteriorating health, fainted, and was being prepped for another major surgery involving her cancer that was spreading across her body. Dr. Pilar joined again, but during the operating procedure, Moa panicked as Patricia started crashing. 

Dr. Pilar saved Patricia, as Dr. Moa was asked to step away. Dr. Pilar, soon after the surgery, conveyed that she believed Dr. Moa probably had feelings for Patricia, which was why he behaved the way he did. Dr. Moa realized there was some truth to it. He conveyed to Patricia that he was in love with her, which was why he could not be her doctor anymore. 

Was Dr. Jesica dead or alive?

Dr. Jesica had been having an affair with Biel all throughout the time since he’d joined as a resident. She was in a relationship with Dr. Lluis, the director of the hospital, yet she chose to have a fling with the younger man. Jesica went through her worst when she lost Rodrigo, and Biel was by her side, which led to the two continuing their affair. Biel was jealous when she briefly called it off, but watching her break down after Rodrigo’s death made him want to be with her even as a friend. Biel was falling in love with her, but she was so far only interested in physical intimacy because of her on-and-off relationship with Dr. Lluis. 

Dr. Lluis was not by her side during Rodrigo’s passing, but despite the mistakes he made, Dr. Jesica went back to him in no time. Dr. Jesica was in trauma, which was why she could not clarify what she wanted from each romantic relationship. It was appalling how no one suspected her and Biel of having an affair, especially Rodrigo when he was alive. Dr. Jesica never ceased the affair, and Biel was happy to be there for her. Dr. Jesica came across a suicidal patient during the storm who was brought to the hospital. His detailed checkup revealed he had swallowed two blades. This reminded Jesica of her brother, and she wanted to help him out. Dr. Jesica carried out the surgery as the first step to save him. Jesica felt she hadn’t been there to save her brother, which made her go out of her way to make sure this young suicidal boy was rescued.

Dr. Lluis, however, learned of Dr. Jesica’s affair with Biel and confronted the young resident. He asked Biel to back off as he planned to propose marriage to Dr. Jesica, and he was sure she would say yes. This was just a show of power by Dr. Lluis, who wanted to prove his love for Dr. Jesica. Biel did not fight it off, as he wanted to be happy for Dr. Jesica, whatever decision she made.  Biel was a reasonable yet emotional man, while Dr. Lluis was the complete opposite, as just a while ago he was willing to believe his son Hugo had not sexually assaulted Joana.

Breathless season 1 ended with Dr. Jesica struggling to control the suicidal boy who was operated on. He was keen on killing himself. There was never any mention of why he wanted to kill himself. He tried to choke Dr. Jesica to death in the hope of running away from the hospital. A while later, Biel showed up in the room only to find Dr. Jesica bleeding profusely from her stomach. This indicated the suicidal boy had been in such a hurry to escape that he’d severely injured Dr. Jesica. She was alive when Biel showed up, but there was no indication if she would survive such a brutal attack.