Sickness on the Street: How I Almost Walked Past My Own Patient

By Dena Rifkin, MD

On my way home from work a few days ago, I saw someone staggering toward me as I headed to the subway station. It was a typical city scene—lots of pedestrians steering clear of someone who was probably drunk, potentially homeless, and possibly dangerous. No one was offering to help him as he stopped and crouched in a doorway. And I did what any urban-dwelling young woman with a sense of self-preservation would do: I started to walk quickly past him.
Then I did a double take. He was one of my patients. Read More