Warning: SPOILERS for Grey’s Anatomy season 18.

Grey’s Anatomy season 18 episode 15, “Put It to the Test,” might have revealed Meredith’s shocking decision to leave Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital, but it also proved that if it happened, Grey’s Anatomy could survive even without her. Being the titular character and one of three still on the show since Grey’s Anatomy season 1, Meredith Grey was always at the front and center of everything happening at Grey Sloan Memorial. Still, Grey’s Anatomy seasons 17 and 18 had Meredith’s storylines detaching from Grey Sloan’s, even when she spent most of the time there, like when she was battling Covid-19 in season 17.

Although she is confirmed to reprise her role as Meredith in Grey’s Anatomy season 19, it's a fact that Ellen Pompeo believes Grey’s Anatomy should end. While viewers will see her as Meredith once again, Grey’s Anatomy seems to be getting ready for a future where Meredith might not be linked to Grey Sloan anymore. Despite starting to work at the Grey Center in Minnesota, Meredith was adamant in telling everyone who listened that she wasn’t abandoning Grey Sloan by working there half the time, as the Parkinson’s research was too important an opportunity. Still, Grey’s Anatomy season 18 episode 15 shockingly saw Meredith realizing it was time for her to leave the place that let her grow as a surgeon, as people at Grey Sloan would always see her for who she was as a resident rather than what she became.

Related: When Grey's Anatomy Season 18 Returns

Meredith might still remain part of Grey’s Anatomy season 19, but seasons 17 and 18’s storylines started to prepare viewers for a world where Meredith is less central. Grey’s Anatomy season 18 episode 15 proved that Grey Sloan Memorial can still be great and show off its best qualities even without Meredith. After all, Nick Marsh’s (Scott Speedman) cutting-edge xenotransplant happened at Grey Sloan thanks to Meredith, but that was the only thing Meredith was involved in when trying to avoid the Medical Accreditation Council putting Grey Sloan’s residency program on probation.

Grey Sloan Memorial department chiefs Grey's Anatomy

Grey’s Anatomy seasons 17 and 18 started focusing more on how other central characters’ stories are linked to Grey Sloan Memorial. It did so with Jo (Camilla Luddington), detailing her transfer from general surgery to obstetrics inside the hospital, which made her a candidate for an interview with the Medical Accreditation Council about Grey Sloan’s residency program. Her contribution, along with those of other doctors, made the examiners realize how deeply doctors at Grey Sloan regard their residents and their program.

Similarities could be found between Grey’s Anatomy season 18 and the show in its heyday. Grey’s Anatomy season 18 episode 15 even saw Richard (James Pickens Jr.) abandon his cognitive and physical assessment to assist Levi (Jake Borelli) in helping his mom after her fall from the stairs. The care Richard consistently showed Levi after he abandoned the hospital was reminiscent of how doctors in Grey’s Anatomy’s earlier seasons treated their residents, not abandoning them even when they made enormous mistakes.

Despite the Medical Accreditation Council examiners witnessing the care Grey Sloan Memorial’s personnel showed to their residents and recognizing it, they still had to place the residency program on probation because of the material lack of physicians. Still, this allowed Grey Sloan Memorial to show how it didn't change too much where it mattered, and it did so without protagonist Meredith Grey being extensively involved. In doing so, Grey's Anatomy paved the way for the possibility of still being great, even if Meredith were to leave.

Next: Meredith's Choice Is Grey's Anatomy Season 19's Biggest Disaster

New episodes of Grey’s Anatomy release on Thursdays on ABC.