By Faye Reiff-Pasarew By Faye Reiff-Pasarew June 29 at 6:00 AM
Faye Reiff-Pasarew is an assistant professor of hospital medicine, director of the humanism in medicine program and unit medical director at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
Sweetheart, youre too young to understand, my patient a man in his 60s, someone accustomed to commanding a room barked at me from his hospital bed. Medical problems had recently upended his life, and he was having a hard time adjusting. I cant believe I have to talk about this stuff to a young girl.
I hear it all the time. Though Im 34 and have been an attending physician for several years, after nearly a decade of medical training, patients routinely ask how old I am, tell me I look like a baby and, most infuriating, call me cute or adorable, as if I were a preschooler playing dress-up. A few have even asked to be seen by a real doctor instead of a girl. Its an experience thats not unique to me but familiar to many other young women in the profession. And while young men may similarly struggle to prove themselves as doctors, theyre never called sweetie.
Yes, its condescending and annoying. But this is not about being thin-skinned. My job is to provide the best possible careand to do that, I need my patients trust. Caring for them depends on their confidence in me.
Every time a doctor walks into a room, they have a professional obligation to overcome potential misgivings. I care for people whove been admitted to the hospital because something has just gone very wrong as an internist specializing in hospital medicine, I deal with everything from heart attacks to potentially life-threatening infections and they need medical interventions right away. I dont have the luxury of time during multiple office visits to earn their trust. Any delay can be dangerous. We cant afford nor can our patients for our recommendations to be taken with a grain of salt.
[Telling women to apologize less isnt about empowerment. Its about shame.]
Case in point: Last year on a flight from Detroit to Minneapolis, a passenger became unresponsive, and flight attendants called for medical help. But according to passenger Tamika Cross, a young African American obstetrician, when she offered to assist, she was told: Oh no sweetie put [your] hand down, and we are looking for actual physicians or nurses. Eventually, another doctor, an older white man, was allowed to help. Cross said she was waved off because she didnt fit the flight attendants description of a doctor.
The problem here apart from race and gender stereotyping is that when a physician treats a patient in an emergency, every minute counts. And it raises the question: what did even the presumably short delay cost the sick passenger? If the older white male doctor hadnt been on board, would Dr. Cross have been permitted to try to save the passengers life?
Just last week, a woman at a medical facility in Canada was recorded saying, Can I see a doctor please thats white, that doesnt have brown teeth, that speaks English? The video went viral and the episode, appropriately, prompted outrage, but women and people of color in the medical profession arent shocked.
These patient biases have been well documented, and are unfortunately reinforced by the healthcare system. Even though studies have shown that female providers produce lower mortality rates among older patients and are more patient-centered than men, our effectiveness is not reflected in patient satisfaction scores that wind up influencing doctor compensation: Female doctors earn 74 percent of what male physicians do. Even in the relatively new field of hospital medicine, which skews younger and closer to even on gender, women are still underrepresented in leadership positions and scholarship.
Physicians today are encouraged to navigate these difficult interactions with humility and empathy sit at the bedside, listen without interrupting and avoid giving orders. At the same time, female doctors are encouraged to exude confidence and assertiveness, to demand the respect were not always initially given. This is a tricky balance. If my patient calls me nurse, I have to clarify my role, refocus the conversation on the medical situation and yet not undermining our delicate rapport.
Ive focused my career on trying to foster humanism in medicine. That includes using poetry to teach medical students about diagnosing cancer; podcasting about art and illness; creating resources for caregivers and inviting patients to speak at grand rounds. Ive come of age influenced by narrative medicine, engaging with patients through their stories. But my belief in embracing patient perspectives sometimes runs up against my sense of social justice. When patients belittle me, even unintentionally, I grapple with respecting their narrative and maintaining respect for myself.
[The word adulting is gross. Its also sexist.]
Should I, and other women physicians, continue our patient-centered approach and hope the arc of history bends towards gender equity? Or do we have to train ourselves to project confidence in a way that doesnt threaten male patients or undermine our inclination to be less authoritative than our medical predecessors? Either way, we need to ask our institutions medical schools, hospitals and private practice groups to stand behind us, acknowledge the realities we face and work with us to find solutions. That might mean featuring female doctors in ad campaigns; providing sufficient gender-neutral parental leave so young women are not disadvantaged at the start of their careers; or tailoring the medical school curriculum to include practical strategies for female physicians to respond to demeaning language and to communicate with both confidence and empathy.
What it definitely means is that patients should understand that our ability to effectively direct their treatment is in their interest.
The day after my sexagenarian patient decried having to deal with a young girl, he introduced me to his wife as the young nurse. I briefly corrected him, introduced myself again as his physician and then sat and listened to his story because, ultimately, that is my job. I tried to understand how this unexpected illness had led to his feeling a loss of control and vulnerability. I saw how that might make him feel defensive. I cant brush aside demeaning language, but I can understand what motivates it. I can find a way to empathize with patients who are suffering, even when they offend me. And, hopefully, I may eventually change my patients ideas about what a real doctor is.
Continue reading here:
I'm a young, female doctor. Calling me 'sweetie' won't help me save your life. - Washington Post
- "NBC Nightly News" - February 12th, 2015 [February 12th, 2015]
- Writer Rhiannon - February 12th, 2015 [February 12th, 2015]
- Katherine Hayles, How We Became Posthuman, prologue - February 12th, 2015 [February 12th, 2015]
- Posthumanism, Transhumanism, Antihumanism, Metahumanism ... - February 12th, 2015 [February 12th, 2015]
- Thoughts on Posthumanism | Larval Subjects . - February 12th, 2015 [February 12th, 2015]
- Transhumanism | Posthumanism | Future For All - February 12th, 2015 [February 12th, 2015]
- Posthuman - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - February 12th, 2015 [February 12th, 2015]
- Posthumanism - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - February 12th, 2015 [February 12th, 2015]
- Posthumanism - February 15th, 2015 [February 15th, 2015]
- Predictions: Who should, will win at 87th Academy Awards - February 21st, 2015 [February 21st, 2015]
- Waking up and smelling the roasted coffee - February 26th, 2015 [February 26th, 2015]
- US-Bangladeshi blogger Avijit Roy killed - February 27th, 2015 [February 27th, 2015]
- Atheist blogger killed in Bangladesh - February 27th, 2015 [February 27th, 2015]
- Leonard Nimoy Showed Us What It Truly Means To Be Human - February 27th, 2015 [February 27th, 2015]
- U.S. blogger hacked to death - February 27th, 2015 [February 27th, 2015]
- The Joy of the Gospel Fills the Heart and Life - February 27th, 2015 [February 27th, 2015]
- WorldViews: Why an American blogger was hacked to death in Bangladesh - February 27th, 2015 [February 27th, 2015]
- Opinion: Roy died for speaking his mind - February 27th, 2015 [February 27th, 2015]
- Terrorists murder American blogger - February 28th, 2015 [February 28th, 2015]
- 'Nobody came to save him,' witness says - February 28th, 2015 [February 28th, 2015]
- American religion critic killed, wife wounded in Bangladesh - February 28th, 2015 [February 28th, 2015]
- U.S. writer hacked to death in Bangladesh - February 28th, 2015 [February 28th, 2015]
- 53 & Grateful - February 28th, 2015 [February 28th, 2015]
- 'Apocalyptic ideology' to blame? - February 28th, 2015 [February 28th, 2015]
- Killed blogger defied Bangladesh threats - March 2nd, 2015 [March 2nd, 2015]
- Avijit Roy received death threats prior to visit - March 2nd, 2015 [March 2nd, 2015]
- American writer hacked to death in Bangladesh - March 2nd, 2015 [March 2nd, 2015]
- Time to face facts over extremism - March 2nd, 2015 [March 2nd, 2015]
- feed - Video - March 5th, 2015 [March 5th, 2015]
- As it happened: Chat with Kalpana Sharma, Subhalakshmi Nandi - March 8th, 2015 [March 8th, 2015]
- In the Memory Ward - March 9th, 2015 [March 9th, 2015]
- U.S. blogger critical of Muslim extremists fatally stabbed in Bangladesh - March 9th, 2015 [March 9th, 2015]
- U.S. atheist blogger killed in stabbing attack in Bangladesh - March 9th, 2015 [March 9th, 2015]
- Tabling of hudud bill threatening to tear PR apart - March 16th, 2015 [March 16th, 2015]
- "The Winter Boy" by Sally Wiener Grotta Nominated for the Prestigious Locus Award - March 18th, 2015 [March 18th, 2015]
- REVIEW: The scars of war - Magazine - DAWN.COM - March 22nd, 2015 [March 22nd, 2015]
- Indonesians treated to Sufi, Punjabi folk music - March 25th, 2015 [March 25th, 2015]
- Blogger hacked to death in Bangladesh - Newspaper - DAWN.COM - March 31st, 2015 [March 31st, 2015]
- Louise Palanker: Why Are Boys Ignorant About Feminism, the Need to Text, Sister Fights - April 5th, 2015 [April 5th, 2015]
- Text of Narendra Modis address to UNESCO - April 11th, 2015 [April 11th, 2015]
- PM@UNESCO: Our world is a better place because of UN - April 11th, 2015 [April 11th, 2015]
- Walking for a cause - April 11th, 2015 [April 11th, 2015]
- Thomas Jeffersons torturous afterlife: How Ronald Reagan and the Tea Party try to steal his legacy - April 13th, 2015 [April 13th, 2015]
- Heidegger, Martin - May 16th, 2015 [May 16th, 2015]
- Lhyperhumanisme contre le posthumanisme : article - Revue ... - December 8th, 2016 [December 8th, 2016]
- Posthumanismus Wikipedia - December 8th, 2016 [December 8th, 2016]
- Home : Rice University Department of English - January 20th, 2017 [January 20th, 2017]
- Trump's Wall Will Fail in the Era of Post-Humanism - Inverse - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- The Fairly Traded Coffee Party - Patheos (blog) - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- James Ibori inspired David Cameron's comment of Nigeria being 'fantastically corrupt' CACOL - Daily Post Nigeria - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Oscar-Nominated Shorts: Unsung but Worth Your Time - New York Times - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Thinging the Real: On Bill Brown's Other Things - lareviewofbooks - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- The Sanders-Cruz Debate Humane Health Care Or Free Market Fundamentalism? - Huffington Post - February 9th, 2017 [February 9th, 2017]
- The Tate dives into the art of David Hockney - The Economist (blog) - February 14th, 2017 [February 14th, 2017]
- Japanese manga artist Jiro passes away - The Kathmandu Post - February 15th, 2017 [February 15th, 2017]
- Announcing My New Book - Patheos (blog) - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Calls for contributions to books and special issues of ... - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- Open letter to Shehla Rashid, from former AMU Students Union leader - DailyO - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- Interview with Scott Blair - Conatus News - February 22nd, 2017 [February 22nd, 2017]
- Freedom & Islam 'not compatible,' says far-right Dutch politician Geert Wilders - RT - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Humans in Dark Times - New York Times - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- American society headed toward a breaking point - Jerusalem Post Israel News - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Talk utilizes postmodern approaches to explore images of the medieval body - NIU Today - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Sophia Al Maria: EVERYTHING MUST GO at The Third Line - Arte Fuse - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- 'Moonlight,' 'La La Land' and What an Epic Oscars Fail Really Says - New York Times - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- Manifestly Haraway - Brooklyn Rail - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Can Universities Save the Enlightenment from Populism? - Huffington Post - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Lecturer for Cindy Wool seminar supports 'slow medicine' - Jewish Post - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]
- Post-Truth Trump And Why Humanism Is The Answer To Anti-Facts - Huffington Post - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]
- Acknowledgment is Not Enough: Coming to Terms With Lovecraft's Horrors - lareviewofbooks - March 4th, 2017 [March 4th, 2017]
- Making Humanism Happen in Nigeria: A labour of Love - Conatus News - March 6th, 2017 [March 6th, 2017]
- The Newfound Lionization Of George W. Bush Shows How Far We've Fallen - Huffington Post - March 7th, 2017 [March 7th, 2017]
- Grapevine: Shimon Peres Day in the Big Apple - Jerusalem Post Israel News - March 8th, 2017 [March 8th, 2017]
- The Victim Of Populism Is Democracy - Huffington Post - March 8th, 2017 [March 8th, 2017]
- In a robot showdown, humanity may happily surrender - Washington Post - March 10th, 2017 [March 10th, 2017]
- Noted secularist Zuckerman to speak here Monday - Ashland Daily Tidings - March 11th, 2017 [March 11th, 2017]
- 'Can we all get along?' Apparently not - Miami Herald (blog) - March 11th, 2017 [March 11th, 2017]
- Book World: In a robot showdown, humanity may happily surrender - Prince George Citizen - March 11th, 2017 [March 11th, 2017]
- What if the problem is simply liberals and conservatives just don't like each other? - Fort Worth Star Telegram - March 12th, 2017 [March 12th, 2017]
- Godless flocks grow, attract like-minded - NWAOnline - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]