Fox’s medical drama Doc centers on Dr. Amy Larsen (Molly Parker), who suffers a traumatic brain injury in a car accident that erases the last eight years of her life.

Now in its second season, and streaming on Netflix as well, the series is adapted from a hit Italian show that is inspired by a real physician who suffered a similar memory loss. As Dr. Larsen struggles to navigate a world she no longer fully remembers, she must relearn medical techniques and balance a complicated personal life that includes steering between a husband she doesn’t recall divorcing and a new romance she can’t recollect starting.

Doc is more than an Italian transplant. Jewish showrunners Barbie Kligman and Hank Steinberg made major changes to the original, most notably by reimagining the protagonist as a woman. This, Kligman said, changed the story so significantly that an Italian production company purchased the United States version and airs it on Italian television with subtitles.

And there’s one more changed element: The love interest became a Jewish doctor who talks about his bar mitzvah and brings matzah and charoset to work during Passover. Played by Jon Ecker, who is not Jewish, Dr. Jake Heller proudly wears a chai necklace to work.

The character, Kligman said, was conceived by both her and Steinberg. They decided that he would wear a chai necklace, because as a doctor, they felt he would naturally connect to the chai symbol, which is represents the Hebrew word for life.  

During a Zoom interview from her home in Southern California, Kligman, a veteran writer and producer who has worked on a number of television series, talked about her background, the show and Dr. Jake Heller.

First, she told me, Barbie is her legal first name. “My eldest sister was 13 when I was born, and she thought that would be cute.” The 54-year-old grew up in Brooklyn, the youngest of four girls, and attended Yeshiva of Flatbush for elementary school.

Her father was a physician who worked out of their home and “instilled in me a tremendous faith in God that has always been a part of me.” This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

How did you get into television?

I always liked to write, but I didn’t actually think people did that for a living. I thought you grew up, went to medical school or law school, or you married someone and popped out babies. But one of my sisters went to Los Angeles and was working in the entertainment industry. I would visit her and started to realize that a writing career was attainable. I could just go and work out there, start a life, and get into the business.

How did you get involved with Doc?

Sony TV, which coproduced Doc, asked Hank Steinberg if he would like to make the show. He did, but he had other projects on his plate at the time. Also, he’d never done a medical show. I was not only a doctor’s daughter, but I had worked on four medical programs—most recently, Code Black and Private Practice. So it really was a good pairing. We’re running the show together, which is really fun.

How did the character of Dr. Jake Heller come about?

Hank and I are both proud Jews, and you know it isn’t a statistical anomaly to see a Jewish doctor. People want to see themselves or their culture or their ethnicity represented on screen. We wanted—especially in this time—to represent and normalize being a traditional Jew for whom it was not a big deal to observe but also live in the world where he saves lives.

Did you consider casting a Jewish actor in the role?

We did, but in the end, we cast the best actor for the role. I don’t recall the number of actors we saw, but once we saw Jon, we knew he was the one.

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Curt Schleier, a freelance writer, teaches business writing to corporate executives.