One of the worst things about using electronic medical record for patients is the pop-up notifications that you get constantly get. Based on a patient's BMI, one may get an alert that the pt is obese/ morbidly obese, because all health care providers must document this diagnosis in their notes. I feel it is completely unnecessary, and discriminatory towards people who happen to be obese.
I know as soon as you open my chart you see
The inescapable alert that is the nemesis of me
The dreaded body mass index (BMI) that tells you
That I am obese, sometimes morbidly obese too
Of course you have noticed my expansive size
But the computer program has also made you realize
That I have a major co-morbidity that must make
It to the list of diagnoses, I know it would take
You a minute to note that I have been counseled indeed
On weight loss strategies, that is my foremost need
It does not matter that I am in your office to be seen
For a sinus infection, my true afflictions have often been
Ignored completely or somehow tied to my weight
And I must be the only one responsible for my state
*
I am used to being judged in a negative light
But even in a healthcare setting I feel I must fight
To be seen beyond the optics of my size
It is hurtful- but few people realize
How medicine is geared to discriminate
Against obese people on the basis of weight
The BMI seems to turn blinders on for everyone
And someone like me feels defeated before I've begun
There are diseases associated with obesity, I'm aware
But of illnesses unrelated to weight, there is a fair share
*
Before you point a finger at me and day
That I just need to lose weight anyway
For my medical issues to be resolved..
If only it were that simple, my problem would be solved!
No comments:
Post a Comment