Before I go off on a tangent about another amazing day of clinical work I had, I want to let you know that I am serious about HIPPA and confidentiality laws. Anything I say in these posts about patients is not personal information and cannot be linked back to their name, address, social security number, birth date, etc. and is therefore ok to post.
Today, I went with social workers (who work with MHICM - Mental Health Intensive Case Managers) all around Puerto Rico to see patients in their homes. This included group homes, condominiums, home depot...I'll explain later.
Our first stop was at a group home for only male psychiatric patients. I was warned before getting out of the car about the attention I may receive because females are not often present in the home. Hesitantly, I exited the car and scurried into the house where we would meet with the patient. The first patient was convinced that I was his wife and would get upset if told otherwise. I am never offended by the comments that are said, but it was a little uncomfortable being told you are someone's spouse and trying to tell them differently is impossible, but I was warned. :)
The second patient was in the same group home and before entering the room, the social worker told me that this patient was "the sweetest man you will ever meet." He entered the room with a big smile that didn't diminish throughout the conversation. His first language was English so when he found out that the interview would be in English today, his face lit up! He told us about how he was a violinist who played at Carnegie Hall, played for Johnny Carson, and was a successful musician all throughout New York City. His life took unexpected turns and he ended up needing psychiatric help. Again, even when talking about his struggles, he was still very positive about his experiences.
He emphasized that he didn't ever want to burden anyone. He would go days and weeks without pain medication because he didn't want to ask someone to get the meds for him. After a long interview with him, the social worker (who had been working with him for a couple years) was astonished about how he opened up to us. He said that because we spoke English, he felt like he could tell us more. He didn't want to burden the social workers and ask them to speak in English in previous visits, so he would struggle with the Spanish to accommodate to them. Seriously, one of the sweetest men I have ever met.
One of the last patients we met with did not want to meet in his home but rather at Home Depot. So, naturally, we conducted the interview whilst walking through aisles of lamp shade samples and wood planks...only in Puerto Rico. :)
This group of patients are complex medically yet very simple in nature. They teach me to be humble and positive everyday and I am oh-so grateful for that.
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| My view for the day |
