Editing Sector General (section)

==Regular characters==
Although many of the characters are "Earth-human" – "human" is ambiguous because all species refers to themselves as "human" in their own languages<ref name="White1987CodeBlue" /> – the stories feature medical staff from a wide range of species.<ref name="White1962HospitalStation" /><ref name="White1987CodeBlue" /><ref name="White1992Genocidal Healer" /> In each story characters belonging to species different from that of the protagonist are treated as neuter and referred to as "it". Some species are touchy about any reference to sexual roles and behavior, some have more than two sexes and some change sex once or more during their lifetimes.<ref name="White1987CodeBlue" />

The following appear in nearly all the stories:
*Dr. Conway: a male Earth-human who starts as a junior intern and, over the course of the series, works his way up to Chief Surgeon and eventually Diagnostician in Charge of Surgery.<ref name="White1962HospitalStation" /><ref name="White1992Genocidal Healer" /> Conway (whose first name, Peter, is only revealed in the ninth book<ref name="White1996Galactic Gourmet" />) generally prefers extraterrestrial company to that of his own species,<ref name="White1962HospitalStation" /> and has a habit of thinking aloud. His passions are healing and Murchison.<ref name="SFRevuNov1998WhiteRetroviewStarSurgeon">{{Cite news
| url=http://www.sfrevu.com/ISSUES/1998/9811/DEFAULT.HTM#StarSurgeon | access-date=2008-12-21 
| title=Retro Review : Star Surgeon by James White  | newspaper=SFRevue | volume=2 | issue=11 | date=November 1998 
}}</ref>
*Murchison: a curvaceous female Earth-human first seen as a senior nurse in the Pathology department.<ref name="White1962HospitalStation" /> She eventually becomes a doctor and a Pathologist herself, and also Conway's wife.<ref name="White1987CodeBlue" />
*Dr. Prilicla: a large but fragile winged insect-like being from the very low-[[gravity]] planet Cinruss. In addition to being highly skilled in the more delicate types of surgery, Prilicla is an [[empath]] and therefore can sense the emotions of most other lifeforms including many non-intelligent animals. Its tact and the desire of colleagues to avoid distressing it by displaying negative emotions generally makes others willing to follow its advice<ref name="White1987CodeBlue" /> – a pattern that one reviewer described as "a pleasant [[Machiavelli]]an streak."<ref name="Lawrence1999Double ContactReview" /> Despite its natural timidity and the distress that other beings' anger, fear and pain cause it, Prilicla uses its empathic ability in prolonged searches for survivors of space combat and accidents.<ref name="White1983Sector General"/><ref name="White1979Ambulance Ship" />
*Major O'Mara: the Earth-human head of the hospital's Psychology department, his job is to ensure that the hospital's diverse species work together as harmoniously, efficiently and safely as circumstances allow, and particularly to save the staff from being driven insane by over-use of Educator tapes. Since he is a very acute observer of behavior and often uses sarcasm "to shrink heads, not swell them", he is sometimes called a "latter-day [[Tomás de Torquemada|Torquemada]]".<ref name="White1962HospitalStation" />
*Charge Nurse Naydrad: a member of the Kelgian species, Naydrad looks like a giant caterpillar. Since the involuntary movements of Kelgians' fur completely show their emotions, the species is incapable of both lying and tact. Naydrad is a specialist in rescuing victims of space accidents.<ref name="White1979Ambulance Ship" />
*Thornnastor: a native of the high-gravity planet Traltha, Thornnastor (nicknamed "Thorny") has a body like a six-legged elephant, and its own keen senses are supplemented by a [[symbiont]] that provides acute vision over up to 360&nbsp;[[Degree (angle)|degree]]s. Thornnastor is the Diagnostician in Charge of Pathology, and it carries ten Educator tapes. Its fascination with gossip, especially about the scandalous activities of a multi-sexed, [[methane]]-breathing, [[cryogenic]] species, is a [[running gag]] in the series.<ref name="White1962HospitalStation" /><ref name="White1987CodeBlue" />