Monday, March 27, 2006
Newsweek - "My Black Skin Makes My White Coat Vanish"
I remember talking to one of the white, male attending physicians in my training program after he witnessed one such encounter. "Listen," he said, trying to comfort me, "I can walk in wearing a T shirt and jeans and I'll always be seen as the doctor, even without an introduction. You will not."
Posted by Kevin |
link
| Comments (9)
| 
Comments:
I don't see the big deal. I am tall, white, male, 42 years old and frequently get "the look", "the glance for the name tag", the "You are too young to be a doctor", "Are you really a doctor?"
I have had black patients accuse me of not seeing them timely purposefully because they were black when I have no idea of skin color when I pick up the next chart in the "to be seen rack". So what? Move on to the next patient.
I have had black patients accuse me of not seeing them timely purposefully because they were black when I have no idea of skin color when I pick up the next chart in the "to be seen rack". So what? Move on to the next patient.
# posted by 
: 5:58 PM
: 5:58 PM
When I (whiteboy)go down to the gym to play a pick up game of b-ball of course I get picked last and endure the snooty remarks from the brothers until I outshoot, out hustle, outplay them. Hell, I can't dance though. I will concede that one.
# posted by : 11:23 PM
: 11:23 PM
More than once I've seen people (sometimes even physicians) walk into the NICU and approach the only male person in the room assuming he was the neonatologist. Any male person in scrubs -- respiratory therapist, housekeeping staff, occasionally RN. It can be entertaining.
I think Dr. Kasongo is presuming that her complexion is the barrier when maybe it's her gender. Regardless, she gets to sign MD after her name and her patients will eventually figure it out.
I think Dr. Kasongo is presuming that her complexion is the barrier when maybe it's her gender. Regardless, she gets to sign MD after her name and her patients will eventually figure it out.
I'm a female marketer. Throughout my career, I've found people assume I'm the assistant, secretary or even a student. I look young, but a lot of it comes down to people expecting a male to be in a position of power. When I was still in university, I worked for the university's athletics department in PR. I had to attend home games and I'd ask the media not to sit in the area roped off for the TV crew. They would say, "Yeah, uh, whatever. I'll move when they call a foul or something." My boss would chew me out when they wouldn't move -- they always moved for him, the 6'5 guy in a tie. The scenario has repeated throughout my career. Now I run my own business and it's pretty clear who's in charge. And the clients know I'm the one calling the shots, since the business bears my name. I'm not sure what would have happened otherwise!
# posted by : 2:46 AM
: 2:46 AM
The problem is that too many people wear the doctors uniform in the hospital. I never use the white coat any more because that is the only way to stand out in a sea of wannabees. Long coat wearers include lab techs, phlebotomists, nurse practitioners, respiratory therapists; virtually everybody but the docs.
Becomming an intern permitted me to graduate to the long coat from the traditional short medical student coat. About half way through internship I became comfortable enough with my position that I switched back to short coats for the expedience; I had 6 of these and only 2 long coats, thus allowing me to stretch laundry to, well, a far too long of an interval. Now 15 years later I still use the short coat when decorum dictates the traditional uniform.
Becomming an intern permitted me to graduate to the long coat from the traditional short medical student coat. About half way through internship I became comfortable enough with my position that I switched back to short coats for the expedience; I had 6 of these and only 2 long coats, thus allowing me to stretch laundry to, well, a far too long of an interval. Now 15 years later I still use the short coat when decorum dictates the traditional uniform.
i'd like to reply to Judy's post-
i don't agree that Dr. Kasongo was wrong in stating that the color of her skin had something to do with the responses she has received from several of the patients she has attended to.
too often in this country we try to act as though race were not a factor in the way people are treated. i'm not saying that being female hasn't made it's own negative contribution, but to imply that race was not a factor in the way she (Dr. Kasongo) was treated would be to belie the situation.
i don't agree that Dr. Kasongo was wrong in stating that the color of her skin had something to do with the responses she has received from several of the patients she has attended to.
too often in this country we try to act as though race were not a factor in the way people are treated. i'm not saying that being female hasn't made it's own negative contribution, but to imply that race was not a factor in the way she (Dr. Kasongo) was treated would be to belie the situation.
# posted by : 3:35 PM
: 3:35 PM
My sister is a doctor in NYC and has complained about the same thing for 20 years. Now that she has opened her own medical practice, it no longer happens because patients have come specifically to see a doctor with her name, and when she introduces herself, well, no one else is in the suite. But when we discuss how some patients respond to her medical advice (I manage her practice), I wonder if they would respond different to her if she didn't have that "skin problem."
Post a Comment
# posted by : 8:49 AM
: 8:49 AM
