Dr. Jack Gallagher arrives for his new job as Director of Psychiatric Services at Los Angeles Wharton Memorial Hospital, and gains the trust of a delusional patient using a unique method. Meanwhile, this maverick psychiatrist must also earn the confidence from his new colleagues and conservative boss, hospital administrator Nora Skoff, who is also his ex-lover.

Jack faces off with Gideon Graham, a famous professor and philosopher who slipped into a responsive catatonic state following a lightning strike that killed his wife. To help Gideon, Jack tries an unusual treatment that may pose a risk to his patient. Meanwhile, Jack finds himself attracted to the patient's daughter.