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To The Editor:
I am absolutely appalled at the article
printed in the March 2010 edition of the New Town press titled "Stop
Playing the Victim Already". The author, Jacqueline Smith goes on a
rampage against people that are overweight, saying they shouldn't be
surprised doctors treat them poorly because it's their own fault and that
they should take better care of themselves- I believe the quote was "lose
weight, drop the fries". To this I say- are you kidding me? Doctors are
paid to provide a service to the people that come in to see them (and
extremely well paid at that at over a hundred dollars a visit). Much like
a waiter, waitress, plumber, lawyer or electrician, doctors are paid to do
a job. They are not paid to give someone an attitude, or disdain a
lifestyle, or to give someone comeuppance for not making good choices. I
am a mental health therapist in the medical field and I would NEVER treat
my clients with so little respect regardless of how many bad choices they
have made. It is completely unprofessional to do that in any occupation.
Furthermore, for Ms. Smith, PFT to talk about people getting up off their
"oversized a...", well, let me tell you that if you took out the word
"overweight" in this article and replaced it with "gay", "old", "female",
or any ethnicity, you would be looking at a major lawsuit for even
publishing such an article. Where does she get off spewing such hatred and
snobbery? People are overweight for a myriad of reasons, some from health
reasons, some as a byproduct of medication, and yes, plenty from
overeating and lack of exercise. People should be encouraged to look at
their choices and it is up to them to make a change. However, a doctor
should NEVER lower the quality of their PAID service to a patient simply
by being overweight. A patient should never have to prove anything to a
doctor as Ms. Smith states nor should a patient ever expect anything less
than quality service when they enter a doctor's office. Ms. Smith's
article will be lining my trashcan unread each month from now on, and
shame on the New Town Press for ever promoting or endorsing such an
article.
Marla Schechter,
Logan Twp.
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