 On February 21 , 2007 , The Wall Street Journal reported that ABC was pursuing a spin @-@ off medical drama television series for Grey 's Anatomy featuring Walsh 's character , Montgomery . Subsequent reports confirmed the decision , stating that an expanded two @-@ hour broadcast of Grey 's Anatomy would serve as a backdoor pilot for the proposed spin @-@ off . The cast of Grey 's Anatomy was reportedly unhappy about the decision , as all hoped the spin @-@ off would have been given to them . Pompeo commented that she felt , as the star , she should have been consulted , and Heigl disclosed that she had hoped for a spin @-@ off for Stevens . The backdoor pilot that aired on May 3 , 2007 sees Montgomery take a leave of absence from Seattle Grace Hospital , to visit her best friend from Los Angeles , Naomi Bennett ( Merrin Dungey , later Audra McDonald ) , a reproductive endocrinology and infertility specialist . While in Los Angeles , she meets Bennett 's colleagues at the Oceanside Wellness Center . The two @-@ hour broadcast entitled " The Other Side of This Life " served as the twenty @-@ second and twenty @-@ third episodes of the third season , and was directed by Michael Grossman , according to Variety . The cast included Amy Brenneman , Paul Adelstein , Tim Daly , Taye Diggs , Chris Lowell , and Merrin Dungey . 
