The hospital superiors order aging Dr. Gillespie (Lionel Barrymore) to hire an assistant, so the old physician reluctantly agrees to choose between upstarts Dr. Adams (Van Johnson), Dr. Lee Wong How (Keye Luke) and Dr. Lindsey (Richard Quine). Instead of testing their scientific smarts, Gillespie decides to show the young men that medical school alone cannot make someone into a good caregiver. Eventually, the three hopefuls realize they should take the elderly doctor's advice to heart.