[Ohio-talk] What I Want!

[Deborah Kendrick]

Suzanne, 
This is lovely -- and so beautifully hits the mark.  I have had some
particularly unnerving experiences just lately in medical offices, so it
strikes a strong chord indeed.  
I wanted one line to read a bit differently, anticipated that it would, in
fact.  It is:
You come out from behind your white coat, and I'll come out from behind my
diagnosis.
For us, it could so easily say:
You come out from behind your white coat, and I'll come out from behind my
white cane.
Thank you for sharing.
Peace,
Deborah

-----Original Message-----
From: Ohio-talk [mailto:ohio-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Suzanne
Turner
Sent: Thursday, March 07, 2013 12:35 PM
To: ohio-talk at nfbnet.org; Jww54 at sbcglobal.net; Delcenia at prodigy.net;
rskill2008 at bellsouth.net; CRDavisjm at gmail.com; GMH10 at case.edu; Alexis
Vinick; Jim Hlavaty; Janice Hannah-Hardy; Sterling Garrett; Carlton Toppin;
Judy Post; Nicole Kahn; Krystle Williams; belinda.richardson at tri-c.edu;
Brooke Dowdy; William.H.Turner at ssa.gov; keylinhartfield at yahoo.com; Tylar
Hartfield
Subject: [Ohio-talk] What I Want!

Good Morning,

The poem below is a collaboration of CSC employees asked by medical Students
to dialogue about our experiences as patients seen by area physicians.  I
hope you will find the poem that their Instructor has written based on our
experiences and conversation enlightening.

Suzanne


What I Want

by Stats Ky Bey, Dr. Anthony Easley, Stanley Griffin, Alicia Howerton,

Moreed Kamal and Suzanne Turner

When I step into her office, I want my doctor to look at me and see the
whole human being that I am.
I want her to talk to me, not the sighted person who drove me here.
And if she pronounces a heavy diagnosis without acknowledging me, I'll ask,
"Since you're only talking to him, can I give my sighted friend the cancer
instead?
This is my appointment, and I'm paying you to talk to me. So talk to me."

I want all insurance companies to get this under their skin:
I'm a whole world more than a name, number, and dollar amount.
And for all my doctors to remember: I am not my body parts, and not my
diagnosis.
So, please, let up on your typing while I'm talking, and turn off your
beeper so you can sit still long enough to hear my story.
Look, I'd like to know your story, too.
You come out from behind your white coat, and I'll come out from behind my
diagnosis.
Even if I have to pack us both a lunch for my visit with you:
Please. Sit a spell. Make yourself comfortable. Take your time.

And while we're at it, let's gather a full team of human beings to lend me a
hand as I stand up from my heavy diagnosis.
Not just medical experts, but those who've been through this, too, folks
willing to share the wisdom, wipe the tears, and coach me on how to deal
with this new version of who I am.
Edify me. Give me something more than bottles of pills rattling around with
side effects worse than the disease.
Do not send me off solo into my anger and grief.
Help me carry this pain. Cry with me.

And once this healing has begun,
I want to walk out from behind my diagnosis and come back into the
community.
To be seen the way I look on paper-rich with credentials and experience.
And recognized for having my own kind of vision.
I want everyone to understand: It's a scientific fact that a tree cannot
grow strong without a strong wind to challenge it.
When people see me with my cane, I intend for them to behold my whole,
entire tree, from the root to the fruit. To look beyond the rough weather I
have withstood and focus instead on the way I'm standing, and standing tall.
To listen to what I'm saying and to think, This tree has got it going on.
It's strong, it's blooming, and it's beautiful, from the root to the fruit.


Suzanne Turner, BSW, MPA
Employment Coordinator and Benefit Specialist

Cleveland Sight Center
216-791-8118 (main)
216-658-7350 (direct)
216-791-1101 (fax)
sturner at ClevelandSightCenter.org <mailto:sturner at ClevelandSightCenter.org>

Visit our website at www.ClevelandSightCenter.org
<http://www.ClevelandSightCenter.org>


1909 East 101st Street
P.O. Box 1988
Cleveland, Ohio  44106-0188

Our Mission: To empower people with vision loss to realize their full
potential, and to shape the community's vision of that potential.

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