Sam Johnson: “I’ve got into the habit of leaning towards the discomfort”

Over the past two decades actor Sam Johnson has been embarking on the unexpected.

From riding a unicycle in a fundraising world-record trek to winning a Gold Logie for his performance as Molly Meldrum, to pausing his career and even entering a reality dancing contest.

His latest project is another detour, embedded in St. Vincent’s Hospital for SBS documentary The Hospital: In The Deep End to see first-hand how hospital staff are functioning in a health system under pressure.

“I’ve got into the habit of leaning towards the discomfort. I started doing that with my year-long unicycle ride about a decade ago. I did it with a dancing show on telly. I can’t dance. You know, it’s all about leaning into this discomfort, because I find answers there,” he tells TV Tonight.

“In all honesty, I’m quite phobic of hospitals”

“In all honesty, I’m quite phobic of hospitals, which was developed when my sister was sick as a kid. I’m scared of spiders, so I ate one. I’m scared of heights, so I bungee jumped. I’m scared of hospitals so I went in one. It’s part of my policy about dealing with fear.”

Almost three years ago, Johnson was in the public health system after being hit by a car.

For SBS he spends time with St Vincent’s Alcohol and Drug service, Mental Health unit Caritas and the Oncology clinic, to learn how staff care for patients, frequently under duress.

“I trust SBS”

Johnson maintains he had no hesitations in joining the series, produced by Smashing Films, because it was being broadcast by SBS.

“(If I was to) go tabloid on this, it could go wonky, so I knew I was in good hands. This is a show about our frontline heroes, not a show about Sam Johnson. I didn’t have any qualms or questions, because I trust SBS. It’s not the same kind of dance with a commercial, more tabloid-driven, clickbaity outfit. I had that trust from the start,” he explains.

“It’s also a huge privilege to be thrown into the hospital system to see things that people don’t get to see. You’re just not allowed there. These are restricted areas, and for a reason. So to have full access to a restricted area was really appealing as well.

“I was able to pull back the curtain, because I’ve been there as a loved one and patient, but I’ve never really seen how it all ticks. So that kind of access all areas pass meant the world to me.”

The series also features Gardening Australia‘s Costa Georgiadis, and Dessert Masters host Melissa Leong in other areas of the hospital including Emergency and the Hospital’s Homeless Outreach team. Footage includes heart transplants, mental health wards and brain surgery, nothing is off limits.

“I’ve really relied on the public system at various stages to help me and my loved ones”

Johnson, who is clearly passionate about what has witnessed first-hand, would like to see changes to better support frontline workers.

“It’s very important to me that we don’t take the system for granted. I don’t have private health insurance. I’m a public system boy, and I’ve really relied on the public system at various stages to help me and my loved ones,” he continues.

“Just because we’ve had public health for the last 40 years doesn’t mean we’re going to have it for the next 40 years. In America it’s three months to see a GP, and we can go down that road if we’re not careful. I love living in Australia. I love this public health system as problematic as it is. It’s also one of the best systems in the world and a system that never this should never be taken for granted, because it might go.

“But it’s the people that we need to invest in. Who’s caring for the people that care for us? People in the health system used to burn out in their 60s and 50s…. now we’re seeing people in their late 20s burning out. We’re investing in these people and training them, and then they’re leaving the industry.”

“I now see hospitals as beacons of light and life”

Johnson, who is currently creating ‘positive vegetables’ to fundraise via LoveYourSister market, says his time at St. Vincent’s has changed his fear of hospitals.

“I now see hospitals as beacons of light and life, and I see our frontline heroes as engaging in world’s best practice. So I was able to get over myself, basically, and embrace the fact that these people are all in.

“I might have a silly little phobia, but these guys, day in day out, are putting Humpties like me back together again.”

The Hospital: In The Deep End screens 8:40pm Thursdays on SBS from June 6.