The House M.D. episode that used three patients to teach diagnostic reasoning was titled “Three Stories.”
“Three Stories” is the series' twenty-first episode and the second-season premiere. In the episode, House gives a lecture to medical students while presenting three apparently different patient cases. The structure gradually reveals how the cases connect to House's own medical history and leg injury.
The episode is notable for its unusual storytelling, shifting perspectives, and delayed explanations. Instead of following one hospital case from admission to diagnosis, it turns diagnosis into a lesson about uncertainty, evidence, and the limits of medical confidence.
The episode won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series, making it one of the most acclaimed installments of House M.D. Its title is sometimes mistaken for a description of three diagnoses, but “Three Stories” is the official episode title and refers to the narrative structure.