Ava Bekker

Dr. Ava Bekker was a fellow, and later Attending Physician in cardiothoracic surgery at Gaffney Chicago Medical Center. She was portrayed by Norma Kuhling.

Ava was born to unknown South African parents in Cape Town, South Africa. Before coming to complete her cardiothoracic surgery fellowship at Gaffney, Ava worked at Groote Schuur Hospital, a teaching hospital located in Cape Town. She worked under the mentorship of world-famous heart surgeon Dr. Marvin Jaffrey.

Ava and her co-fellow Connor Rhodes initially dislike each other, but later develop a healthy sense of competition, vying for the approval of their mentor Dr. Latham and frequently one-upping each other. They eventually become romantically involved.

During the course of season 4, when Connor starts to rebuff her romantic advances, Ava starts to torment him with increasingly elaborate schemes and ploys, culminating in her killing his father Cornelius with an overdose of insulin. When she is found out, she commits suicide by slashing her carotid artery, causing Conner to decide to leave Chicago at the beginning of season 5.