I'm a doctor, not a...

I'm a doctor, not a... is a famous and  used in Star Trek. Originally used by Dr. Leonard McCoy in Star Trek: The Original Series, the phrase lived on in various other incarnations of Star Trek and was used by both Julian Bashir and The Doctor, among others. Dr. McCoy's original delivery of the phrase varied with emotional intensity, from extreme frustration to light-hearted sarcasm. Subsequent uses in later series also mirrored this performance. This iconic phrase has also appeared in other media as both a parody and homage to the show.

Dr. Leonard McCoy

 * "What am I, a doctor or a moon-shuttle conductor?"
 * "My dear girl, I'm a doctor. When I peek, it is in the line of duty."
 * "I don't know, Jim. This is a big ship. I'm just a country doctor."
 * "Me, I'm a doctor. If I were an officer of the line..."
 * "What do you mean what sort of work? I'm a doctor."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a bricklayer."
 * ...to which Kirk replies, "You're a healer, there's a patient. That's an order."


 * "I'm a surgeon, not a psychiatrist."
 * In the episode, Doctor McCoy is called as an expert witness in space psychology. Psychology and Psychiatry are completely different, however.


 * "I'm not a scientist or a physicist, Mr. Spock..."
 * "Look, I'm a doctor, not an escalator."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a mechanic."
 * "I'm a doctor, not an engineer."
 * ...to which Montgomery Scott immediately replied, "Now, you're an engineer."


 * "I'm not a magician, Spock, just an old country doctor."
 * "I will not peddle flesh! I'm a physician."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a coal miner."
 * "I'm not a mechanic, Spock..."
 * "I'm a doctor, Spock ... a doctor! Get us beamed aboard!"
 * During one episode of, DeForest Kelley spoke the line "I'm not a doctor, I'm a convicted murderer."

Dr. Leonard McCoy (alternate reality)

 * "I don't need a doctor, damn it, I am a doctor!"
 * "I'm a doctor, Jim, I'm busy!"
 * "Damn it, man, I'm a doctor, not a physicist!"
 * "Damn it, man, I'm a doctor, not a torpedo technician!"

Dr. Julian Bashir

 * "Garak, I'm a doctor, not..." meaning a spy or an investigator, but Garak interrupted him. *Garak says "I'm no more a spy than you are..." Julian interrupts, saying "A doctor."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a botanist."
 * "I'm a doctor, not an historian."
 * Variation as Julius Eaton: "We're writers, not vikings."

The Doctor

 * "I'm a doctor, Mr. Neelix, not a decorator."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a bartender."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a voyeur."
 * "I shouldn't have to remind you: I'm a doctor..."
 * ...interrupted by Torres: "...not an engineer. Right, but..."


 * "I'm a doctor, not a performer."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a counterinsurgent."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a database."
 * ...to which Henry Starling responds: "I'd say you're a little bit of both."


 * "I am a doctor, not a peeping Tom, there's nothing I haven't seen before." (When catching Lt. Torres in the sonic shower.)
 * "I'm a doctor, not a battery."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a dragon-slayer."
 * "I'm a doctor, not a zoo-keeper."
 * "I'm a doctor, not an engineer."

Dr. Phlox

 * "I'm a physician, not an engineer."

Starfleet EMHs

 * USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E) EMH Mark I: "I'm a doctor, not a doorstop."
 * USS Prometheus (Prometheus class) EMH Mark II: "I am a doctor, not a commando."

The Original Series

 * James T. Kirk: "I'm a soldier, not a diplomat."
 * "You keep saying that. Are you a doctor, or aren't you?"
 * "These are people, not robots."


 * Karl Jaeger: "I'm a scientist, not a military man."

The Next Generation

 * William T. Riker: "This is geology, not malevolence."
 * K'Vada: "This is a military vessel, not a pleasure craft." (regarding his Bird of Prey in )
 * V'Sal: "I'm just a barber, not a miracle worker!"

Deep Space Nine
"This is work, not recreation." "I'm a changeling, not a solid." "I'm not a God, I'm a security officer." "He's not a detective, he's an engineer." (, about Miles O'Brien)
 * Gaila: "I'm a weapons dealer, not a soldier."
 * Cardassian Security Officer: "This is a jail, not a hotel."
 * Dukat: "That's justice, not malevolence."
 * Crewman Kellin: "I'm sorry captain, but I'm an engineer, not a magician."
 * Gilora Rejal: "We're scientists, not diplomats."
 * Martok: "Why? You're a bartender, not a warrior."
 * Miles O'Brien: "I'm an engineer, not a philosopher."
 * Odo: "I'm a security chief, not a combat pilot."
 * Benjamin Sisko: "This is not a request, it's an order."
 * Douglas Pabst: "I'm a magazine editor, not a crusader."
 * Julius Eaton: "Calm down dear boy. We're writers, not Vikings."
 * Worf : "I am a warrior, not a murderer."
 * Quark: "You're asking me? You're the terrorist, I'm just a bartender." (, to Major Kira)

Voyager

 * The Doctor : "This is a sickbay, not a conference room."
 * "They're Klingons, not kittens."
 * "This is sickbay, not an arsenal."
 * "She's a counselor, lieutenant, not an engineer." referring to Deanna Troi
 * "This is a sickbay, not a dormitory."
 * "This is a Federation starship, not the Barge of the Dead!"
 * "It's not justice, it's revenge."


 * Diagnostic Hologram
 * "I'm a diagnostic tool, not an engineer."
 * (said of The Doctor): "It wasn't programmed to be a tenor, it was programmed to be a physician."


 * Tom Paris : "I'm a pilot, Harry, not a doctor!"
 * B'Elanna Torres : "I'm an engineer, not a costume designer."
 * Harry Kim : "They're scientists, not soldiers."
 * Neelix : (Quoting Captain Janeway, refering to her as "the warden") "This is punishment, not shoreleave."
 * Chellick : "We're healers, not killers."
 * Kathryn Janeway : "This is a starship, not a nature preserve."
 * Nechani Magistrate : "I'm an official of the government, not a spiritual leader."

Enterprise

 * T'Pau : "He doesn't need a physician, he needs a priest."

Apocrypha

 * DeForest Kelley: "I'm an actor, not a doctor."
 * Quark: "You're a doctor, not a gambler". (The Big Game)
 * Kira : "I thought you were a doctor, not a hacker." (Proud Helios 260)
 * Miles O'Brien : "Dr. Bashir, you're a doctor, not a first-contact specialist." (Valhalla 19)
 * McCoy : "You're a doctor, not a Horta." (The Return 268) talking to Bashir.
 * EMH : "I'm a doctor, not a computer." (Avenger 350)
 * EMH as McCoy : "I'm a doctor, not an interior designer." (Avenger 351)
 * McCoy : "I'm a Doctor, not a target." (Star Trek: Judgment Rites)
 * McCoy : "I'm a doctor, not a sideshow." (Avenger 354)
 * McCoy : "I'm a doctor, not an engineer!" (Star Trek Online) Series 2 - Episode 4 : Everything Old Is New Again
 * EMH : "I'm a doctor, not an archaeologist." (Wildfire 118)
 * EMH : "I'm a doctor, not a concierge." (A Time to Sow 135)
 * EMH : "I'm a doctor, NOT a Space Marine!" (Star Trek: Voyager: Elite Force)
 * EMH : "I am an Emergency Medical Hologram, not a miracle worker!" (Star Trek Online) During Khitomer Crisis Mission after character creation
 * EMH Mark II : "I'm a doctor, not a quantum mechanic!" (Spectre 212)
 * Brex : "Damn it Jim, I'm an engineer, not a conversationalist!" (Star Trek: Bridge Commander)
 * Jean-Luc Picard: "I'm an explorer, Donald, not a warrior." (The Buried Age 97)
 * Q: "Well, what did you expect? He's a doctor, not a security officer." (Star Trek: Borg) referring to Dr. Thaddeus Quint

Prior Art
While the character of Dr. McCoy arguably made the phrase "I'm a doctor ..." part of the common lexicon, he was not the first fictional doctor, or even the first character on the big screen, to coin the phrase. In the 1933 American film The Kennel Murder Case, Dr. Doremus, the coroner at the scene of the titular crime, states "I'm a doctor, not a magician," and "I'm a doctor, not a detective," within five minutes of his first appearance. The latter line was also uttered by Dr. Fortescue, played by, in the 1949 version of . It is unclear whether these particular dialog artifacts were progenitors of McCoy's famous phrase.

"I'm a [whatever] not a [whatever]" is also a Yiddish idiom, most commonly "I'm a [whatever,] not a rabbi."

Related topics

 * 47 references
 * Star Trek parodies
 * He's dead, Jim