2007-02-23 - 4:43 p.m.

...another step upwards...

I have found the coolest doctor, and even better - I'M ON THE LIST. She's accepted me as a patient.

I've mentioned before that Canada - and Vancouver in particular - is experiencing a serious shortage in the number of health care professionals. This meant that I had been hunting about for quite some time to find a doctor, as most clinics wouldn't take us.

Over Christmas, my department chair and his wife (who are leaving for Oz) recommended that we take their slots with their doctor...who happened to be a geriatric specialist. oops. Well, when your choices are zero-to-none, a nice and available geriatric doctor looks pretty good. So we called to see what was up. Unfortunately, the geriatric doctor would only see K (he doesn't do women of childbearing age. Or perhaps I should say, "take").

But there *was* another woman in the office who could take me on as a patient...IF I swore on my father's grave that I would not recommend any more patients to the office. I swore the appropriate oath and we made the appointments at the beginning of January. Which means that I just got in to see the doctor today.

And she is the coolest person. She's about 45 years old, with long, curly hair, and a shock of unabashed grey starting at her top and temples. She works part time at a women's clinic downtown, part time at an office that is one block from my house. And once per week, she volunteers at a crisis center for women. She was friendly, personable, asked me about my exercise habits, my hobbies, and my work while taking down my family history. When I asked her questions, she cited a couple of research studies in her answers. I've found a thinking doctor, not a 'medical professional' who treats patients like cogs on an assembly line.

It's been a long time since I've really liked a doctor. In fact, it's been years since I've been in one room with a doctor long enough to gain any type of impression (they are usually darting out the door for their next three patients so that they make their daily quotas). So this was quite refreshing.

Too bad I have to be sick in order to see her.