Interview Reflection
I worked directly in the dynamic field of intersectional mental health care as an intern for the YSPH’s New York City ESTEEM Research Lab. Having conducted human subject research before, I was confident that working in a public health lab would be no different. Quickly, however, it became clear that the caliber of a clinical research trial was more stringent than I’d initially expected; the lab was shifting its focus from primarily conducting online outreach to in-person-based models of recruitment. One of our first attempts was recruiting participants at NYC Pride, where we screened nearly 200 potential participants. Once the parameters for clinical trial inclusion were added to the mix, however, only one person qualified. For the nearly
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One of the more memorable days in the clinic involved a member of the medical team’s asking me to screen a patient who “simply” had a heavy drinking problem. I alerted the attending physician and made my way into the exam room to perform a PHQ-9 Evaluation, conduct an S-BIRT Screening and most importantly, to hear his story. The patient was a 58-year-old man who had only just moved to the United States. To my surprise, the man was jovial, smiling and joking with me throughout our conversation. I’d learned the importance of creating a safe environment for the patient to allow them to feel that their concerns were valid and would not fall on deaf ears. We talked about our shared heritage and lamented the colder weather of the Northeast. After a few minutes of chatter, he began to open up about his personal story. He revealed that he had moved to the US alone in search of better opportunities. He then said that his best friend in Mexico had passed away earlier that week and as a result, he found himself drinking 8-9 drinks a night to cope. Right away this information gave the situation more context than did that label of “heavy drinker” given by the medical team ever could have. I reviewed some of the risks and harms associated with alcohol abuse and also provided him with a list of free Spanish-Speaking
One of the more memorable days in the clinic involved a member of the medical team’s asking me to screen a patient who “simply” had a heavy drinking problem. I alerted the attending physician and made my way into the exam room to perform a PHQ-9 Evaluation, conduct an S-BIRT Screening and most importantly, to hear his story. The patient was a 58-year-old man who had only just moved to the United States. To my surprise, the man was jovial, smiling and joking with me throughout our conversation. I’d learned the importance of creating a safe environment for the patient to allow them to feel that their concerns were valid and would not fall on deaf ears. We talked about our shared heritage and lamented the colder weather of the Northeast. After a few minutes of chatter, he began to open up about his personal story. He revealed that he had moved to the US alone in search of better opportunities. He then said that his best friend in Mexico had passed away earlier that week and as a result, he found himself drinking 8-9 drinks a night to cope. Right away this information gave the situation more context than did that label of “heavy drinker” given by the medical team ever could have. I reviewed some of the risks and harms associated with alcohol abuse and also provided him with a list of free Spanish-Speaking