debdodd

I vote that we slap you guys up side of your head for being such goof balls!

__________________
"Ubi dubium ibi libertas."

"We are all lone souls. It pays to know humility, lest the delusion of control, of mastery, overwhelms. And indeed, we seem a species prone to that delusion, again and ever again ....."

debdodd

I just wanted to reopen this thread because of the experience I've had the past two days .... I was interviewing with a prominent medical practice and 'll be damned if they were not gay bashing!!! These weren't really old docs or operation managers but guys in their 40's ... one guy said it was an abomination and implied that gays getting HIV was god's way of punishing them ... they said they were doing god's work ... what the hell ... denying care to folks because of their sexual orientation!!! well why don't we just say we won't treat them if they are priests and are celibate!!!

I was really just dumbfounded by this so I called a couple of my gay & transgendered friends and they said they had been turned away by docs before, especially the transgendered people ... the one that I know for a fact had problems was one of my previous patients who was a transgendered male to female when I would try and schedule specialist appointments and gave them the H&P info ... they declined to see that patient!!! Did you guys know that? That docs will review your medical records before they see you so that they can turn you down? Now if they see you first and try and get rid of you .... you can sue them (if it's 'cause your gay/trans/bi/tri/whatever) but if they never see you at all, physically, they can turn you down as a patient!!!! It's a silent epidemic for sure but this is probably the 4th practice that I've seen that refuses to see patents due to their sexuality!

This guy yesterday told me transgendered people were are " all crazy in the head" a little paraphrased but the word "crazy" was used and "head" was used ... I just didn't hear it everything single word because my damn chin hit the conference table with a loud thump! ...

I have never been a demonstrator of bumper sticker, flag carrying individual but ... I was/am ashamed that I didn't tell this jerk to take his job and stick it (damn thing paid too much money for me to say it right then) but once I got home and PM'd one of my buddy's here I have decided I don't care how much money they pay ... I will keep looking rather than compromise on my beliefs of individual freedoms .... I wonder what they are giving out for food stamps and welfare n our state .. just kidding not that bad around here ... had to bring some levity into this conversation "cause I am so incensed!!!!

you know who the worst are??????????? The Catholic hospitals!!! Yep ... I worked for one for many years ... we were not allowed to talk with our gay males about safe sex practices, we were to talk to them about abstinence .... I kid you not .... ... uh you're HIV positive but we can't tell you to be safe because it's against the RCC rules so go spread it around cause I know you're not gonna stop anyway... just go ahead and spread the wrath of god around some more ..... damn Catholics ... yeah I said it ...

oh and the way we got around giving females birth control pills ... we'd ask them ... do you have menstrual craps, they'd say " no" ... then we'd tell them .. are you sure be you have insurance thru the catholic hospital and we can't give them to you because it's against Catholic doctrine ... then we'd ask have you ever had a menstrual cramp??? they'd usually either laugh and say yes or get P.O'd cause of the religious crap .... but we had to do this every time to get around this nonsense! If you worked for the catholic hospital here and got the less expensive hospital insurance ..... BAM! you were screwed and without protection!!!

As you can tell ... this really pisses me off .... religious people .... stay out of folks bedroom!!!!

__________________
"Ubi dubium ibi libertas."

"We are all lone souls. It pays to know humility, lest the delusion of control, of mastery, overwhelms. And indeed, we seem a species prone to that delusion, again and ever again ....."

NotConvinced

Although doing this is surely detestable, I don't think they should be mandated to "have to see anyone and everyone."

Doctors and medical centers that do this, turn people away like this, should surely be put up on TV and billboards and everything else for doing so, because it's wrong; but I think they should have the right to be dumbasses if they want to.

To be clear though, we're not talking about emergency room cases are we? If they come in with an emergency and are turned away I think that's indeed something different.

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Everything you think you thought, the water's gone...every drop.

duck

Actually, if there is a provable history of refusing medical care (even in a private practice) or accepting or not accepting certain patients based on race, creed, religion or sexual preference (outdated term, but still used) they would actually be in a world of **** with a federal discrimination lawsuit or prosecution. Especially if anybody--and I mean anybody, not just the partners--in that practice are still paying off federally guaranteed student loans.

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Religion: The ultimate definition of verisimilitude

debdodd

no these are not ER docs or nurses but there has been reported cases of Paramedics that have given what has been considered substandard care in instances of transvestites/transsexuals ... this happened in the southeast United States several years ago ... no, for the most part ER's are very good about treating people no matter race, gender, money etc ... but having been in this business a long time I have to tell you I have seen such arrogance from some MD's that would disgust many ... there are some great docs out there but I have seen some truly reprehensible ones also .... oh and yes, I have had some of my transgendered friends be shuttled off to other docs .... this is one area of which I have personal knowledge. When we would call from our office to refer patients to certain specialists .... the doc's representatives would tell us no, and suggest other docs ... we had a whole list of docs that wouldn't see our patients ... especially the HIV patients in the late 90's ... it was despicable .....

Funny story for you tho .... when my son was little (about 6 years old) it was mandatory for him to shake hands when I ever introduced him to an adult (in all fairness, I bribed him with happy meals ... so he knew if he did this he would get the stupid toy .. but it was my Pavlovian way of teaching him to shake hands and the whole manners thing) anyway ... I had him with me at work on my day off and we saw this one doc in the hallway and I said Dr. So-in-so I'd like to introduce you to my son Alex .... Alex being the trained monkey that he is ... stuck his little paw out to shake and this doc hand and this jerk off said ... "You'd better be good while you're here", didn't shake his hand, nothing and then walked away ... to say I was pissed was an understatement, course I had to explain it to Alex and all that that ... so about six months later we are at the hospital riding up in a elevator full of people and this doc gets on and Alex says really loudly .... "look Mommy, it's the mean doctor" I just looked down at him and said "yes it is Alex" there was dead silence on that elevator .... only time I've ever allowed him to be disrespectful to an adult, the doc got off a few floors later and when he did, people turned around and ask me about it, if he was really mean, etc .... hehehe .... vengeance that day was named Alex ... one of the "out of the mouth of babes" moments ... it was great, I still had to work with that doc but I never, ever showed him respect again .... I was respectful in front of patients but any other time ... game on .... it was never anything I could get in trouble for but her knew what I thought of him ..... I later found out he was in to S & M and had a dungeon in his basement (true story) !!!!

There are bigoted people every where as you know ... hell my brother and dad are prime example of bigotry towards african americans ... disgusts me with their ignorance ... so if they hate non whites, you can only imagine what they feel towards folks with alternative lifestyles .... actually didn't talk to my dad for two years over racism ... I had a friend over (she was black and her child was with her) ..... my dad saw her in the kitchen and ask me what the housekeeper was doing there with her kid and I said Dad, she's my friend, his reply "if her black ass isn't here to do the floors or windows I want her out now" that was beyond unacceptable and one would think my dad was white trash ... in fact he was a CEO of a large company, educated but a very narrow minded man ... still is to this day .... I see him about 4 times a year, 4 times too many ... Father's Day, Mother's Day, Christmas Eve .... rarely any other time if I can help it ..... perhaps that's why I am such a "soap box" person because I lived with narrow minded people .... all I know is I can't wait until the entire world is beige so we can get over this whole color nonsense!

__________________
"Ubi dubium ibi libertas."

"We are all lone souls. It pays to know humility, lest the delusion of control, of mastery, overwhelms. And indeed, we seem a species prone to that delusion, again and ever again ....."

duck

One of my administrators and several of my co workers are more than a little bit racist. They have also been openly hostile to students that are openly gay.

I would dearly love to somehow figure out how to be the "sword of Gideon" with them. No place for that crap in a school.

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Religion: The ultimate definition of verisimilitude

debdodd

You are absolutely right Duck ... the key is proving it .... they wouldn't come straight out and say "NO WE WONT SEE YOR PATIENTS BECAUSE THEY ARE GAY" but since they knew we were an internal medicine practice specializing in HIV, they wouldn't take our patients ... you don't think some little medical assistant making $10 an hour is going to risk her job ratting her boss out do you no way .... there are practices here in Indiana, that before a doc will allow you to schedule an appt ... he gets a mini history over the phone and then decides if he will see you or not ... I swear this is true Duck!

There is this one practice that if the patent is on any kind of anti anxiety medications or pain meds, even darvocets, they refuse to see the patient! They get around that whole discrimination issue with some other BS reason. This is another true story ... we had this patient ... he had something wrong with his rectum .... can't remember what it was but this doc told him ... if you would keep pen**s out of there you wouldn't have this problem! I kid you not .... when this doc was ask this by our doc ... the other doc said yes! that's what caused his problem!!!! there was no gentle discussion .. it was straight out rude to the guy!!!! And the doc told my doc ... you may think it's okay for them to have that lifestyle but I don't and I would prefer you not send me any more .... this was a gastroenterologist!!!! He didn't say he wouldn't he said I would prefer that you didn't! I sh*t you not!!!

The one thing that doctors do tho' .... they protect their own .... when doc's are called for peer review of other physician's they do everything they can to get out of it ... no doc wants to criticise another doc's methods of treatments .... even the doc I worked with who was wonderful would do anything to get out of peer reviews .... like I said .... I've been around a while and I would swear these stories are true on Alex's life! I am not embellishing these stories in the least ... I've actually cleaned up the verbiage used ..... still pisses me off to this day and that was 4 years ago

__________________
"Ubi dubium ibi libertas."

"We are all lone souls. It pays to know humility, lest the delusion of control, of mastery, overwhelms. And indeed, we seem a species prone to that delusion, again and ever again ....."

duck

Spot on, Deb.

I did say "provable". That is the key. And like NC was alluding to, ERs have a really hard time legally turning anybody away.

__________________
Religion: The ultimate definition of verisimilitude

debdodd

yeah but you can end up waiting in ER's around here for 10 hours if it's not life threatening!!!! It's cheaper here to go to an Immediate Care Center (I call then doc in a box) than to go to an ER and you'll get seen sooner ....

Our ER's, at least the big ones are basically run by the residents .... me have a medical school here in the city so they do all the grunt work .... ask poor Og's wife ... she knows how hard they work the residents .... they recently passed a law here to protect residents from working such long hours ... there were some that were doing outrageously long hours ... FINALLY ... they saved those hard working residents and let them get some sleep now and then ... medical residency is grueling work ...

A few years a go we ha ER's turn some people away .... they now have great settlement money from the hospital .... yeah they turn them away but they make them wait forever then they end up walking out after hours and hours waiting with crying babies in the waiting rooms .... it's very sad .. especially with the economy being so bad .... public health care is stretched to the max ... They have started a few free clinics around town but it's still not enough ... we have a large Hispanic population and not enough translators to help with the language barrier ....

Remember when that actor's (Dennis Quaid?) twins that were given the wrong doses of heparin and almost died (last year) .... that happened here about 3 years ago but several of the babies died .... the nursing shortage is getting critical .... the thing is,with most nurses, the same as with me getting jobs is easy .... I was offered 4 jobs last week but they all sucked or no benefits or horrible hours .... yeah there are nursing jobs out there .... you just have to weed thru the crappy ones .... I have certain areas I will not work .... pediatrics, nursing homes, family practice or prisons!!!! I enjoy education, management and complex medicine ... the mundane of family practice, unless it's in management bores me to tears .... spend all day giving babies shots, doing pap smears and refilling prescriptions ..... boring!!!! I am a bit of an adrenaline junkie when it comes to work .... I like fast paced medicine or jobs where I am challenged ... teaching adult students is enjoyable but Duck I don't know how you tolerate teaching teenagers ... eeeekkk .... I'd yank out my hair ... or their hair explain that one to a parent!

just a quick question ... is your state really restrictive about teachers punishing kids or what ever they call it now a days ... our governor is actually trying to give teachers back more power over unruly kids .... about time ... kids in public high schools here talk horrible to the teachers .. especially the inner city teachers put up with a lot of crap ... sorry to get off topic... I was just curious ....

__________________
"Ubi dubium ibi libertas."

"We are all lone souls. It pays to know humility, lest the delusion of control, of mastery, overwhelms. And indeed, we seem a species prone to that delusion, again and ever again ....."

debdodd

No place for that kind of intolerance anywhere! Doesn't that kind of stuff just chap you ass at times not to be able to tell these morons to STFU! I know it does me ....

Alex's school is very good about diversity .. no problems at all .... the high school is only about 450 students .... it's a pre-k to high school ... gated with security every where ... have to have special keys to get in after class starts and there are electric gates and fence around the whole school .... average class size is 11 to 14 students ..... nice ratio isn't it?

almost every high school teacher has their masters or doctorate .... these teachers are awesome! Of course they have smaller classes so they can really get to know each kid, their learning style and therefore the kids at this school get the highest SAT's in the state .... sure helps to get into college ... this is the first year they have ever weighted the classes ....

you should see graduation ... OMG .... it is like nothing you've ever seen (at least not me) .... all the boys wear tuxs with red bow ties all the girls wear long white formals (most of them buy tasteful wedding gowns ... I sh*t you not!!!) carrying a dozen long stemmed red roses .... they look every bit like brides going down the aisle!!! It a tradition that has gone on for close to 100 years .....No cap and gowns for these kids ...

we were very fortunate to get Alex in there ... his admittance and schlarships were/was for his academics not because we could afford the tuition believe me .... no way I can afford $18,000 a year for high school!!!! hell that's more than state college here!!!! oooopppps once again off topic .... had too much caffeenne today!

__________________
"Ubi dubium ibi libertas."

"We are all lone souls. It pays to know humility, lest the delusion of control, of mastery, overwhelms. And indeed, we seem a species prone to that delusion, again and ever again ....."