tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post5323346774340989581..comments2023-10-26T05:49:59.824-04:00Comments on Reflections of a Grady Doctor: Dr. No.gradydoctorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-69668021213356866532013-09-07T15:12:43.750-04:002013-09-07T15:12:43.750-04:00Unfortunately this is not just the midset of Black...Unfortunately this is not just the midset of Black patients in their 90s. I am now a 4th year medical student at a medical school that has little diversity in the south. No one in my family went to college, let alone medical school and many only made it to middle school. My mother is in her 50s and during the beginning of my 3rd year of medical school when I starting to wear my short white coat daily, I didn't understand why she was so worried about the appearance of my white coat. She would call me every Sunday night for me to come over to her house so that she could wash and iron that coat! Initially, it would anger me as I couldn't understand why she was more concerned about my white coat then she was about the knowledge I was trying to acquire and the myriad of exams I was required to take on the road to becoming a physician...After numerous interactions with Black patients during my clinical years, I don't get upset anymore. I get it. To many who didn't have the opportunities that I am now afforded, appearance was the one thing you could control that defined what kind of person you were. Uniforms define most of the professions that those in my family as well as those of the Black patients I encounter...so in a sense your patient felt uncomfortable because she couldn't categorize you based off of your appearance as the one who was in charge. Unfortunately this mindset still applies to those in their teens and 20s, but by continuing to see knowledgeable, caring and compassionate doctors like you and that which I hope to become, the uniform in their minds will change. <br /><br />PS. Soror, I'm an avid reader of your blog but this is my first post. Keep it up, "WE" are watching and learning... Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-75211780637976645062013-08-21T19:04:25.018-04:002013-08-21T19:04:25.018-04:00This is so interesting to me... it just is really ...This is so interesting to me... it just is really not about race at all most of the time...it is the damn lab coat!...I used to be a caretaker for some very rich families (some you would recognize) (sp?)ha! Anywho...when the movie The Help came out I thought to myself..."Am I the only one who doesn't get it"? I am white and believe me if they could have made me use a separate bathroom they would have! ain't for city galshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14938751007704247232noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-50749860247659359222013-08-21T18:09:54.173-04:002013-08-21T18:09:54.173-04:00Wow. Intense.
I have to say though, in all fairne...Wow. Intense.<br /><br />I have to say though, in all fairness, I strongly prefer male doctors because female doctors don't take me seriously. They always think they can relate and that I just need to get over having a "hard" life. Male doctors don't quite as easily relate but they feel bad for me and therefore spend a little bit more time trying to figure out how to help me.<br /><br />Just an honest opinion from a young female who is skeptical of female doctors,<br />AbigailAbigail Cashellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06250292620460654855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-65283183823248353472013-08-21T17:23:14.660-04:002013-08-21T17:23:14.660-04:00thank God for people like your dad with courage to...thank God for people like your dad with courage to lead the way. if not, where would we be?<br /><br />if the older men keep teaching the young ones not to drink from the fountain, and the men guarding the fountain kept teaching their kids the same, we wouldn't have progressed at all.<br /><br />Deep. <br /><br />-Renee<br /><br />Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15463109276230684520noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-19471580928433323092013-08-21T17:22:13.676-04:002013-08-21T17:22:13.676-04:00She's 90, so you could give her a pass for tha...She's 90, so you could give her a pass for that. On the other hand my Aunt Winnie is 94, about to be 95 on YOUR birthday, and she is a soldier in this march for equal rights. She educated US. So her age is not the thing. Maybe it has to do with geography? In any case, this made me very sad, especially given that you are the doctor that would see this elder most fully, who would go the extra mile for her, and she doesn't even realize that. My niece started dental school at Howard on Monday! Not Meharry, but a proud and accomplished tradition nevertheless. Has this elder never heard of "twice as good to go half as far?" If she had, she'd have asked for the colored doctor or the lady doctor every time. In any case, you handled the situation with true grace. 37paddingtonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12400464105403622384noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-49480379768098311362013-08-21T13:31:58.549-04:002013-08-21T13:31:58.549-04:00The "Mis-Education of the Negro" by Cart...The "Mis-Education of the Negro" by Carter Woodson (written in the early 1930s) is a powerful (and, I think, greatly under-appreciated) analysis of the forces that have shaped the mindsets of generations of people in our country. The words of your 90-year-old patient are not at all shocking to me in the context and the framework of her upbringing. What is shocking and heartbreaking to me is that so much of what Woodson wrote still applies (sure, it may be dressed a little differently and spun a little more fancily, but the core message is surprisingly unchanged).<br /><br />I cannot recommend this book highly enough, especially to people who are in any way involved in the upbringing and/or education of children (particularly, children whose skin is a little richer in melanin). White Coat Dreamerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02805599382000688596noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-15909915662570649772013-08-19T22:51:00.564-04:002013-08-19T22:51:00.564-04:00That. That's it right there, Poopdeck. I think...That. That's it right there, Poopdeck. I think she'd lived through things like your Daddy did. And that left her mind in a different. . . mindset. And what can you tell someone who has lived through that? <br /><br />Answer: NOTHING.<br /><br />Love you, Dad. <br /><br />Kimberlygradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-77360744387896288572013-08-19T22:49:22.418-04:002013-08-19T22:49:22.418-04:00I didn't even think about what you face in the...I didn't even think about what you face in the church setting. Wow. Peoples' expectations are a powerful thing to go up against.gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-91080208379587929292013-08-19T22:47:45.652-04:002013-08-19T22:47:45.652-04:00Yep. Maybe she just wanted her doctor to wear a da...Yep. Maybe she just wanted her doctor to wear a damn lab coat! Ha ha haha. <br /><br />Seriously, though--this could be highly complex or not at all, right?gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-86314653620922654162013-08-19T22:28:47.703-04:002013-08-19T22:28:47.703-04:00From the deck of the Poop,
I swear fo God, I may ...From the deck of the Poop,<br /><br />I swear fo God, I may have been inclined to say a few choice words to 90 year old sister girl. LOL This was an absolute trip. I went to see "The Butler" on Sunday and actually shed a few tears just remembering when I was there. I was a freshman in college during the year when that stuff started. I was working at a steel mill in Birmingham Alabama (my home) the summer following my sophomore or Junior when the White and Colored signs were taken down. The older black men working there, reminded us, younger blacks that we had been drinking from those Colored fountains all summer and the water was exactly the same; so don't go startin no trouble by drinking out of the white folks fountain.<br />Of course I went straight to the White Only fountain, had to sort turn sideways to get thru the semi-circle of white men that had attempted to discourage me from doing so. I later realized that the old-timers were simply trying to keep me safe. The other younger blacks followed suite the day after ,when they saw that I had not been attacked??? The sad part for me is that I knew that my father would have given me the same admonishment if he had been in that plant. I didn't understand then but I understood later. They knew what the KKK and other were capable of during that time.<br /><br />Great post!<br /><br />Poopdeck<br />tdraper09https://www.blogger.com/profile/10788283138381058265noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-42862192996045681222013-08-19T22:04:20.464-04:002013-08-19T22:04:20.464-04:00Kind a deep but complicated, right?Kind a deep but complicated, right?gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-46260055095569223572013-08-19T22:04:01.557-04:002013-08-19T22:04:01.557-04:00These deep-seated beliefs come from a lot of years...These deep-seated beliefs come from a lot of years of a lot of stuff. I tell myself that often so that I won't get too bothered, you know? I don't know what it's like to be in the un-airconditioned side of Grady back when it was segregated. She does.gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-54252881721129954052013-08-19T22:02:12.494-04:002013-08-19T22:02:12.494-04:00Kind of, right? But I did feel bad since I normall...Kind of, right? But I did feel bad since I normally wear my coat. What's funny is that I do have some friends who never, ever do. I'll have to ask them what kind of shit they get about it, if any at all.gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-39998984619267068362013-08-19T22:01:12.558-04:002013-08-19T22:01:12.558-04:00I wonder about so many people. I hope that bright ...I wonder about so many people. I hope that bright young woman went on to work to her potential.gradydoctorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10639816377218206777noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-68631840549806845992013-08-19T21:58:04.393-04:002013-08-19T21:58:04.393-04:00What an amazing and rich encounter. I have had sim...What an amazing and rich encounter. I have had similar experiences in the pulpit, some folk don't believe women are allowed to preach, because of what the Bible says and all. I admit when I had surgery a few years ago and the anesthesiologist came in and looked like a teenager, Kristian and I looked at each other and said after he left, "we are officially old". I had to shift my mindset to feel safe with a younger doctor, especially one that was in charge of knocking me out. Jillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06744125557101852519noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-79266116954642833782013-08-19T19:59:45.601-04:002013-08-19T19:59:45.601-04:00Wow...what a stunning look into the mindset of som...Wow...what a stunning look into the mindset of someone I'd be unlikely to have any interaction with on a personal level. If I was the physician I would have been thoroughly befuddled by her response, though after some contemplation I can see where it might have originated. As the patient I would be kind of perplexed by a physician who showed up in a patient setting sans the white coat, but it wouldn't matter to me what characteristics they happened to have (e.g., gender, age, race, whatever). I can't remember the last time that happened, and I'd probably query it, too, unless I could read the name badge clearly. But this patient sounded more like she had some preconceived notions about who should be a doctor that went far beyond the white coat. My own experience says none of that matters; only the truth in their credentials, the openness of their heart, and the skills of their training matter to this potential patient.medrecgalnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-47298077823361835522013-08-19T15:36:59.927-04:002013-08-19T15:36:59.927-04:00My mom always said that after slavery, some black ...My mom always said that after slavery, some black folks' shackles were no longer on their feet, but now on their minds. <br /><br />Bless her heart. Some people still don't know we're free. <br /><br />-ReneeAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-26257471646529758212013-08-19T15:31:58.795-04:002013-08-19T15:31:58.795-04:00This really bothers me. I don't think your coa...This really bothers me. I don't think your coat would have made a difference to her. Sometimes we have our minds made up already and just look for evidence to validate it. It's like she feels less than a white person or less than a man.. Not good at all.Serenity3-0https://www.blogger.com/profile/08002713490128899754noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-20042568349899478452013-08-19T11:41:42.113-04:002013-08-19T11:41:42.113-04:00This is just so sad. For her. This is just so sad. For her. Ms. Moonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09776404747858099919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3245783834297902042.post-91567715201964213922013-08-19T10:36:42.031-04:002013-08-19T10:36:42.031-04:00After college, when I was trying to get hired in t...After college, when I was trying to get hired in the public schools I worked at Davidson's in Lenox square. On weekends I worked with an african american high school senior who was smart as a whip. When I asked her what colleges she was applying to she told me "none". She said that because of her skin color no one would ever take her seriously, so why bother spending all that money for nothing. The thing is, like mine, her father was a disabled vet. At that time she could have gone to school on the GI bill. I was stunned by the attitude. Nothing I could say would get her to change her mind. She wouldn't even consider a junior college like Dekalb Tech (Perimeter now). Now I wonder if she had people like your patient in her life discouraging her. I think about her a lot. I hope that at some point she changed her mind and did decide to get an education.Lisa https://www.blogger.com/profile/09324961653370110887noreply@blogger.com