One patient experience that sticks out to me took place while I was working in the psychiatric unit.  This individual was homeless, suffered from substance use disorder, and was suicidal.  I was able to have a good conversation with this patient and learned a lot about his situation.  To start, he had been homeless for a few years, poor personal hygiene/nutrition,  had no family members to look to for support, and had an extremely difficult childhood in which both of his parents were alcoholics.  He also had a high school education and had been retired for almost 5 years.  It was pretty safe to say that he had a pretty tough upbringing and has been struggling lately.  He then talked to be about how he had been living in shelters, eating at soup kitchens, and struggling to get by each day.  Additionally, with the weather getting colder, it was also a concern for him as he had no guaranteed place to stay.  He acknowledged to me that he had a drinking problem but, told me that it was the only thing that made him happy anymore.  He said he would often find himself back at the tavern drinking constantly to fill the void in his life.  This was really sad to hear as he was a very nice individual cracking jokes every now and then and seemed to have a jolly side to him.  His addiction however, had taken away his life, family, and any money that he had. 

     After talking to this patient, it really made me reflect on my childhood and how I was brought up.  I lived in a financially stable household with parents who had a positive influence on me.  I can remember there always being someone there when I was hurt, sick, or crying.   Seeing how difficult of a childhood this patient had really opened my eyes into how easily someone can go down the wrong path and turn to things such as substance abuse.  This patient never really had a positive influence in his life to guide his decisions.  He did not know any better so it really made me feel for him.  Substance use just became a normal coping mechanism for him.  Seeing his side of the story helped me to be less judgmental and more understanding of his problems and others who may be dealing with the same thing.  I feel like many of us are so quick to judge homeless people we see on the streets.  But in reality, many of these people deal with untreated health problems only hurting them more.  This caused me to reflect on the poor access to healthcare in the United States and how many people are left on the streets helpless. 

      This patient has been disadvantaged from the start.  This has been due to social status and lack of money.  He has no way to receive the medications he needed, has no way of taking care of his personal hygiene, no means of transportation, and no place to live.  What was difficult was that there was very little we could do for him after he gets out of the unit.  The patient did not have money to receive all the treatment he needed, and there was no guarantee that he would be able to get his housing situation under control.  This was left in the hands of policy makers as the hospital could only do so much for him.  At the end of the day, I was wondered if the unit would see this patient again after discharge.  This had not been his first trip to the unit, and it seemed as if he had a long way to go in his recovery.  I could only hope that he was able to get the support he needed to live a good rest of his life. 

     Overall, this patient experience has brought a new awareness and understanding to me.  I have learned about health disparities/health inequity in class and through watching videos on it, but to witness it in person was very moving.    I will always remember this experience and  use it in my future to be more understanding of the less fortunate.  We are all brought up in a different way, and it is easy to see how one can go down the wrong path without proper guidance.   This has helped me to become a more aware health care professional and has opened my eyes into a new way of thinking.  I now have a better understanding of health care disparities people experience each day.  This will only motivate me to provide quality care to all the clients I may have with hope of a bettering their futures and helping as many people as I can.