03/17/2022
This was in the Ness county News Feb 2022 when I read it by the time I finished it I was in tears
Such a sweet young lady
My family doctor has been instrumental in my life. Dr. Imseis had been my doctor from the time I was born to last year when he retired. He has guided my interest in medicine from an early age. He not only showed me the hardships that pursuing this career holds and how to get through them, but also the great rewards and joy it can bring as well. He showed me a path in life that I never thought to be accessible to me.
Dr. Imseis is an older, Middle Eastern man that was the only practicing doctor in a small town in southwest Kansas. He understood his position within the community, and never took advantage of it, because he also came from a less privileged community. Dr. Imseis was originally from Jordan, and moved to the United States to pursue an education in medicine. After earning his degree, he began working in the town that my mother grew up in. He was my mother’s physician for all of her life, save for the years that she lived outside of Kansas, and resumed being my family’s doctor when my family moved back years before I was born. Due to my mother’s great respect for him, we remained under his care even though we lived an hour from the town he was located in. I learned why my mother respected him so much over the years, and have come to share that great respect for him.
From an early age, Dr. Imseis had been a fascinating figure in my life. I grew up as a sickly child, so I visited his office often. To a small child in a predominantly white community, he seemed almost of an anomaly. He walked with a cane and a limp, dragging around a smaller leg that was affected by polio at a young age. He had thin, wild hair, and glasses that snapped together in the middle with a pair of magnets. He was always patient with any questions or long stares that are bound to happen with small children, and utilized his limb difference as a learning opportunity. He also had a very kind smile, and a laugh that you couldn’t help but laugh along with. His eyes were kind, and his demeanor was always patient and understanding, which fostered a sense of trust in me from the beginning.
Due to his kindness, I don’t have memories of being afraid of going to the doctor or the typical fears that go along with visiting one. He always offered me the comfort of allowing me to have a parent in the exam room, as well as asking my parent to leave the room if there were questions that he felt I may be uncomfortable answering with them present. His patience showed best when he took the time to explain procedures or tests that I was going through. He never simply told me, “Now I need to draw your blood.” He took the time to explain to me why he needed to, and how the blood was going to be used. Whenever he diagnosed me with an illness, he explained the illness, how I got it, and how the medicine was going to help make it go away.
Not only did he show me the practice of being a doctor, but also how deep a doctor’s care truly runs. He was always kind, and showed great compassion. He also showed that his patients were much more that patients with illnesses or statistics. He taught me that a doctor sees these people in his care as his own family. He shared our pride, accomplishments, pain, heartbreak, worry, and more. He kept up with our daily lives, and made a point to ask before starting the appointments. He also extended his care beyond his prescription of medication. He always texted and called from his personal phone to follow up on your progress over the days and weeks after your visits. He was always just a text or call away, which was always appreciated when it was difficult to decide if a trip to the emergency room was necessary or not. His willingness to work on and off the clock showed me how passionate and caring one has to be to become a doctor.
He was a great steward to my learning as soon as he learned of my interest in medicine. He showed me all of his instruments, and allowed me to use them on my parents under his supervision and with their approval. This fun, exciting learning environment helped my interest blossom into a goal as I got older. As I got older, I began examining the medical field as a possible career choice. I faced adversities that come with being a woman headed to and in a STEM field and major. I had a principal tell me that my PSAT was too low to go into a medical field, and I should consider other options. I face male peers invalidating my merit within my STEM classrooms, making me have to outperform over and over, just to show I belong in a major that I have already proven I can compete in. Despite these discouraging events, I have always had Dr. Imseis encouraging my journey. He asked of my academic progress at every visit, and applauded my success, no matter how big or small. He assured me that he believed I could achieve great things, which meant the world to me after more difficult semesters that made me doubt my abilities.
Overall, Dr. Imseis is my hero. He has shown me not only what a good doctor is and can be, but also what makes a person good. I have learned life values from him that I hope to carry throughout my schooling as well as my future career. Due to his kindness and willingness to foster a relationship with me through medicine, I believe I can pursue my full potential. My hope is to one day turn around and become that same steward to another young girl interested in, but unsure of a medical care that Dr. Imseis was to me.
