With their residency over, there are big changes at Sacred Heart. J.D. moves out to live on his own while Turk and Carla consider a family change. Meanwhile, one of the residents receives a job offer from another hospital.

When Turk saves a man’s life at the local taco stand, he tries to keep his ego in check as Dr. Cox takes all of the credit. To avoid ruining her new relationship with Jake, Elliot enlists J.D.’s help to prevent her dates from becoming too intimate. Meanwhile, Dr. Kelso terrorizes the hospital from the seat of his new Rascal motorized wheelchair until Janitor takes matters into his own hands.

When the brother of an elderly patient tries to sue his sister’s well-intentioned neighbor for helping her decide what course of treatment to take, J.D. begins to question his faith in humanity. Meanwhile, Turk struggles with sharing his true feelings about his relationship with Carla when the two begin couples therapy. On the verge of giving up on men altogether, Elliot reluctantly seeks advice from Dr. Cox on how to catch the eye of the handsome hospital visitor.

Reeling after the news that J.D and Carla kissed after a night at the bar, Turk lets the two of them decided who will take responsibility and have to deal with the silent treatment indefinitely. Dr. Cox reluctantly turns to Elliot for help getting through to a young, female patient. Meanwhile, Janitor petitions Dr. Kelso for a new janitor’s uniform, only to find his coworkers no longer fear him in his new threads.

At his best friend’s request, J.D. agrees to take Carla out to convince her that Turk is trustworthy and that she should move back home. What starts out as a friendly drink takes a turn into unknown territory when J.D and Carla take things a little too far and share a “friendly” kiss, something they both decide that Turk does not need to know about. At the hospital, Elliot and Dr. Kelso struggle to maintain their professionalism when faced with a young patient who is suffering from complications after experimenting with erectile dysfunction pills. Meanwhile, Dr. Cox tries to find the balance between being an over-protective father while still trying to be the cool dad after his son falls off the jungle gym.

When Carla and Turk are experiencing marital difficulties, JD and Elliot do their part to try and cheer up their friends. Meanwhile, Dr. Cox challenges Dr. Kelso to lead by example and take on a few patients of his own after Kelso criticizes his bedside manner — but nothing works out quite as planned.

After a month of dating, J.D. is a bit frustrated that Kylie still doesn’t want him to spend the night. That frustration leads to temptation when kooky psychiatrist Dr. Molly Clock returns to Sacred Heart to check on a patient. While J.D. struggles with whether or not to act on his residual feelings for Molly, Carla tries to hold back her true feelings when she learns that Turk is still talking to his ex-girlfriend. Meanwhile, Dr. Cox and the Janitor enter into a friendly wager over whether or not the Janitor can get Elliot to go out with him.

Turk and Carla ask J.D. to move out to give them some space to rekindle the romance in their relationship. Suddenly homeless, J.D. tries to use the situation to his advantage by asking his girlfriend Kylie if he can stay at her place. Meanwhile, Dr. Cox gets a visit from his high school friend Ron. Dr. Cox and Ron’s relationship has always been highly competitive, and just when Dr. Cox thinks he has the upper hand, the discovery that Ron’s son may be autistic sends them into unfamiliar territory.

J.D.’s imagination is sparked by a patient, a sitcom writer, who is about to receive some very bad news. J.D. ponders how the lives of everyone at Sacred Heart, including his patient, would turn out if left in the hands of the writer. Elsewhere, Turk and Carla are struggling to keep the romance in their relationship while Dr. Cox and Dr. Kelso continue their one-upmanship over whose job is harder. Portions of this episode were shot in front of a live studio audience in the manner of a traditional sitcom. Clay Aiken guest stars as a talent show participant.

J.D.’S efforts to make a good impression on a first date reach desperate levels when he and Kylie get caught in a hospital quarantine. A series of unfortunate events bring J.D. And Kylie to Sacred Heart on their first date, where J.D. accidentally initiates a SARS quarantine and is forced to resort to desperate measures to make a good impression. While the hospital is in lock-down, the rest of the staff recounts various first date stories leading to the revelation that Dr. Cox and Carla dated in the past. Tara Reid guest stars as J.D.’s ex-girlfriend.