Last time I saw this movie was in November, so correct me of I'm wrong. When Ben want to do a procedure in a different manner, what was up with that white doctor (that prick) that threatened to fire his ass in a heartbeat? Who the hell does he think he is!?
shareThat scene wasn't merely about portraying the doctor as a prick. "Who the hell does he think he is!?" --> an experienced doctor, versus an inexperienced intern.
1) Sometimes (not always), in situations like those, a senior person in the job environment actually needs to be a threatening prick in order to imprint a sense of hierarchy amongst interns. Perhaps not as severely as that (I won't be able to act like that myself - I'd engage the youngster in conversation and explain to him why he must follow my orders first) but it's easy to understand that that doctor has seen situations like those many, many times before: when a new kid on the block tries to impress and follow his own head instead of doing what they're asked to do by more experienced veterans. It is a hospital, after all - not the right breeding ground for rebellion. So, the moment Ben tried to do that, the doctor had to cut him off, even if it was done in a highly unpleasant manner. (I'm sure the doctor didn't enjoy behaving like that, as he'd have tough memories of his own intern-days as well.)
2) The real purpose of the scene was to show that Ben is getting the upper hand in controlling his temper. That scene tested Ben in 2 ways: the senior doctor was testing Ben's discipline, but moreover, whether Ben could reign himself in and not strike out, like he was naturally inclined to.
Ben passed the grade on both counts in that scene.
Otherwise, one can read racial prejudice into that scene, but I doubt whether that was the point. That aspect of Ben's reality had been covered (very effectively) earlier in the film. Had it been a white intern trying to contradict the senior doctor, the reaction in all probability would have been similar.