ALLENDALE, Mich. — Finding the right doctor for you can be difficult. It can be even harder when you have to worry about finding one that accepts you.
This Pride Month, Corewell Health is highlighting their LGBTQIA+ patient navigator, a unique program to help connect patients with safe and affirming healthcare.
What makes it unique — a real, live person on the other end of the line.
"It's really, really scary when you don't know if the physician that you see is going to see you as human or if we're going to call you your name," said Zoey O'Brien, Corewell Health's Patient Navigator. "It's absolutely terrifying."
O'Brien knows how to make patients comfortable because she knows what it feels like to be on the other side.
"I remember when I first started, I ended up having friends come with me to my appointment, because I was that scared that they were going to think that I was weird or something was wrong with me when I'm just a human being, and this is just part of the spectrum of existence," O'Brien said.
She's able to talk to patients about their needs and concerns to help them find a physician who fits them best — anything from a surgeon to a therapist.
The resource is the only one of its kind in the state. Patients, like Mae Lexi Zurita, say it's necessary.
"I had a bad experience with a doctor," Zurita said. "They were just, you know, asking too many invasive questions that were unrelated to my care, and they were going to be modifying my care because of assumptions that they were making about how my trans identity would affect my recovery, and it was just not okay."
After this experience, Zurita discovered the patient navigator. She connected with O'Brien, who connected her with her current provider, Dr. Chris Palazzo.
"From the front desk to the clinical staff, having that sense of you can be your authentic self. We're going to celebrate who you are, and this is ultimately going to lead to better care," Dr. Palazzo said about creating a safe practice for patients.
He says this resource is about more than mental and emotional health; discrimination can impact physical health as well.
"We know that these things raise cortisol levels for people. We know that discrimination does this," Dr. Palazzo said. "We know that stigmatized populations deal with higher levels of microstress than populations that are not in this category."
Both Dr. Palazzo and O'Brien wear rainbows on their ID badges so patients know they're accepting.
Before you even enter the practice, you'll see a sticker that says "safe and affirming practice" as you enter the waiting room. That means everybody in that office has had at least some level of training on providing care for the LGBTQIA community.
"When you were looking for a specific doctor who can be affirming to you, you might already be going through kind of an urgent medical issue, so making sure that you can get that response quickly and in a way that you aren't risking your own identity is awesome," Zurita said.
In just one year, the LGBTQIA+ Patient Navigator has helped more than 900 patients get safe and affirming care. Now, all 10 of Corewell Health's hospitals in West Michigan are being recognized by the Human Rights Campaign’s 2024 Healthcare Equality Index for their policies on equity and inclusion.
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