Dr. Derek Shepherd

Derek Shepherd
Grey's Anatomy character
Patrick Dempsey as Derek Shepherd in 2012
First appearance	"A Hard Day's Night" 1x01, March 27, 2005
Last appearance	"You're My Home" 11x25, May 14, 2015
Created by	Shonda Rhimes
Portrayed by	Patrick Dempsey
Information
Full name	Derek Christopher Shepherd
Nickname(s)	McDreamy Shep McDreary McAss
Occupation	Attending neurosurgeon Member of the Board (former) Chief of Surgery (former) Head of Neurosurgery (former)
Family	Mr. Shepherd (father, deceased) Carolyn Maloney Shepherd (mother) Nancy Shepherd (sister) Kathleen "Kate" Shepherd (sister) Elizabeth "Lizzie" Shepherd (sister) Amelia Shepherd (sister) 9 unnamed nieces 6 unnamed nephews (one deceased)
Spouse(s)	Addison Montgomery (m. 1994; div. 2006) Meredith Grey (m. 2009–15)
Significant other(s)	Rose
Children	Zola Shepherd (daughter) Derek Bailey Shepherd (son) Ellis Shepherd (daughter) (with Meredith)
Relatives	Molly Thompson (half-sister-in-law) Lexie Grey (deceased-half-sister-in-law) Maggie Pierce (biological half-sister-in-law) Owen Hunt (brother-in-law)
certifications	M.D. F.A.C.S

Derek Christopher Shepherd,M.D., also referred to as "McDreamy", is a fictional surgeon from the ABC medical drama Grey's Anatomy, portrayed by actor Patrick Dempsey. He made his first appearance during "A Hard Day's Night", which was broadcast on March 27, 2005. Derek was married to Dr. Addison Montgomery (Kate Walsh) for 12 years, before their divorce in 2006. Before his death in 2015, Derek was happily married to his longtime girlfriend Meredith Grey (Ellen Pompeo). The couple are often referred to as "Mer & Der" and they have three children together. Derek was formerly the Chief of Surgery at Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital, but abruptly resigned as chief in season 7 following the shooting. For his portrayal of Derek, Dempsey was nominated in 2006 and 2007 Golden Globe for the Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series Drama for the role, and the 2006 SAG Award for the Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Drama Series award.

Derek arrives at Seattle Grace Hospital as the new Head of Neurosurgery from New York City. He is a Bowdoin College graduate and attended Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons alongside his childhood best friend Mark Sloan and ex-wife Addison Montgomery and Private Practice characters Naomi Bennett and Sam Bennett. Derek was a student of Chief Webber and was enticed to come with an "offer he couldn’t refuse" – the position of Chief of Surgery, which Derek eventually turned down. He specializes in highly complex tumors and conditions of the brain and spine and came to Seattle Grace with a reputation for taking on "lost causes" and "impossible" cases most of his peers would turn down. As an attending he is both well-liked and feared — well-liked by patients and his scrub nurses for his compassion and gentlemanly bedside manner and feared by interns and residents who are intimidated by his reputation and high standards. He is passionate about his job and has been known to expel staff or remove interns and residents (or at least threaten them) from his service for being disrespectful about patients or if he deems their attitude to be detrimental to his patient's well-being.