She eventually marries Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams) and together, they have two children: a son, Samuel, who tragically dies from osteogenesis imperfecta type II, and a daughter named Harriet.

Initially, April focused on neurosurgery during her residency due to a crush on Derek Shepherd (Patrick Dempsey),[5] but she ultimately found her true passion in trauma surgery.

[6] After failing her medical boards, April briefly leaves the hospital but later returns as a surgical attending when Chief Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd) offers her job back.

The character received mixed reviews from critics early on, with some finding her irritating due to her insecurity and overzealous nature.

However, as April evolved and her storylines deepened, she gained significant character growth, and many fans began to appreciate her journey, eventually becoming a fan-favorite.

She joins the staff at Seattle Grace Mercy West after the merger of the two hospitals, alongside Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams), Reed Adamson (Nora Zehetner), and Charles Percy (Robert Baker).

April is first shown to possess a red diary, in which she writes all her feelings and thoughts which is stolen by Lexie Grey (Chyler Leigh).

Following the shooting, April and fellow resident Jackson Avery move into Meredith Grey's (Ellen Pompeo) house.

April also impresses Owen Hunt (Kevin McKidd) and she is ultimately granted the position of Chief Resident in the Season 7 finale.

As a celebration of the conclusion of their residencies, the former chief of surgery Richard Webber (James Pickens, Jr.) organizes his annual dinner for them.

The eighth season ends with April, Jackson, Alex, and Richard waiting for Meredith and Cristina, who are victims of an aviation accident.

When April finds out that she is not pregnant, she is overjoyed, but inadvertently hurts Jackson's feelings by saying that they dodged a bullet, seemingly thrilled that they don't have to get married anymore.

In the next episode, a very attractive paramedic named Matthew (Justin Bruening) asks April out for coffee and they start seeing each other.

They scheduled an induction for the next day, at the beginning of the appointment they are asked to sign their baby's death certificate, which is too hard for the couple to bear.

In the season 11 finale, April decides to join Owen Hunt for three months as a trauma surgeon with the army; this not being well received by Jackson.

After Catherine Avery convinces Jackson to fight for full custody of his unborn child, April takes out a restraining order against him.

She does this after treating 3 seemingly simple patients who are good people and die, including Matthew's pregnant wife, after delivery.

Drew was cast in Grey's Anatomy in late September 2009, first appearing in the fifth episode of the sixth season as April Kepner, one of the residents from Mercy West Medical Center after its merger with Seattle Grace.

[11] Drew received the promotion news after the sixth episode of Season 6, "I Saw What I Saw", aired on October 29, 2009, describing the call as a "totally happy surprise.

Series creator Shonda Rhimes elaborated: "Watching April try to be in charge of Cristina and Alex and Jackson is a pretty impossible task, and it's made for comedy.

Early in her appearances, she is introduced as the best friend and roommate of fellow Mercy West resident, Reed Adamson (Nora Zehetner).

In the tragic Season 6 finale, when Reed is murdered by Gary Clark during the hospital shooting, April is the first to find her, tripping over her dead body.

Carina MacKenzie of The Los Angeles Times called it "ridiculous," adding: "April is drooling all over Chief McDreamy.

"[8] Drew herself was skeptical of the storyline, stating: "The biggest thing that people did not like about my character was they thought I was a threat for the Mer/Der relationship, which I kind of found was super ridiculous ...

"[18] April briefly has feelings for Alex Karev (Justin Chambers), and almost loses her virginity to him in the Season 7 episode "Something's Gotta Give".

"[21] At the end of Season 8, Kepner begins a romantic relationship with her best friend, Jackson Avery (Jesse Williams), and loses her virginity to him.

Her saccharine-sweet attitude and wide-eyed insincerity were hilarious, as was her super-mysterious hot pink notebook full of morale-boosting platitudes.

Reviewing the first part of the eighth season, Courtney Morrison of TV Fanatic wrote: "Although the girl has grown in terms of likeability, her downfalls still outweigh the positives.

"[27] Kepner was included in TV Guide's list of The Most Loathed TV Characters, noting: "The extremely neurotic April (she makes Liz Lemon look laid back) has slowly made strides with fans thanks to her personal setbacks — she lost her treasured virginity to her best friend and failed her boards — but she still has a long way to go.

"[31] The Hollywood Reporter also remarked: "It's nice to see April with a bit of a backbone and putting Alex in his place, as the newfound confidence suits her well.