A Physician Assistant’s Journey of sharing God’s love one patient at a time
“What brings you in today?” A physician in dark grey scrubs sat in a chair, holding his iPad and stylus, eager to obtain the necessary information. “I’ve been having a lot of chest pain lately.” “I’m sorry to hear that. I know you’ve already been through the initial triage with the nurse and you’ve already …
Angry patients can be difficult. They're angry because they have financial difficulties, because their diabetes is very uncontrolled and they feel miserable, because they suffer from depression (a lot of men hide their depression with anger), or for a number of other reasons. But angry patients don't really bother me because it's hardly ever directed …
"It's back." Tears rolled down her cheeks and she sobbed. "Oh, no." I grabbed her hand and held it tight. She could only feel the rubbery material of my gloves and she could only see my eyes above my mask but despite the physical barriers, she knew my comfort was there. "You've gotten through it …
She spent most of her days overwhelmed with fatigue. She spent a lot of days vomiting. She spent a lot of days traveling to her doc’s office for radiation. She spent two years with breast cancer. I spent time with this patient for two years. I spent our visits smiling with her. I spent our …
“ Your diabetes is very uncontrolled.” I looked at this sweet elderly patient of mine. “ I’m not worried about it. God‘s got me.” The patient smiled and looked me squarely in the eyes. “ I agree that God has you but maybe He put me in your life to help with your medical needs.” …
"Sometimes it's hard to breathe. All these thoughts are shoutin' me. Try to bring me to my knees. And it's overwhelming. Darkness echoes all around. Feels like everything is crashing down." When I discovered a child abuse case a few years back, I found it hard to breathe. The x-ray was shouting at me. The …
Part of practicing family medicine is providing patient education. I have to be able to explain diagnoses and treatments and answer patient questions. A great example is when I diagnose overactive or under-active thyroid disorders (hyper or hypothyroidism). "Will I have to take this medication forever?" I'm often asked. "Yes." "Will the medication work?" Is …
I'm Kristina Polley, a Physician Assistant that practices Family Medicine. I'm referred by most of my patients as their "family doc". Typically, that means that I take care of their high blood pressure, diabetes, thyroid problems, weight issues, high cholesterol, anxiety, depression, and a few other chronic conditions. I'm the one they see for their …
Too often, my patients say, "I feel like everything is falling apart." It usually starts with a discussion on their health. Diabetes can cause fatigue, headaches, abdominal pain, and just an overall description of "not myself". Thyroid disorders can cause weight fluctuations, constipation/diarrhea, depression/anxiety, heart racing, fatigue, and another overall description of "not myself". Chronic …
Essential workers are called heroes. We are on the frontlines of COVID-19, attempting to detect and treat patients who are infected, risking exposure to the virus. But there are many times when we don't feel like heroes. When a patient dies, we feel that we've failed them. And when a patient survives but had to …
Finding Faith In Medicine 