It’s time for your checkup. Wait 30 minutes to an hour in a waiting room and fill out forms. Then wait another hour for the doctor to be ready to see you. Then see the doctor for 4.5 minutes, try explaining any issues to him or her, and then proceed to be politely shoved out of the office to make room for the next patient.
Although this (unfortunately) seems to be the case for most people vying for their doctor’s attention, Dr. Cecilia Chang wishes to change that.
Known lovingly as “Dr. Chatty” by her patients and fellow staff members, Chang is currently a physician-in-training, working as a second-year pediatric medicine resident at a reputable hospital in Queens. She hates the factory-like environment of a hospital, where one patient sees a doctor, they speak for five minutes, and the next patient comes in.
“The whole experience of being in a hospital with an ailment is tough on anybody, and with a machine-like doctor, can be almost unbearable,” Chang explains. “Being a doctor isn’t about the paycheck you get at the end of the day, or how many patients you’ve cured; being a doctor is about being devoted to my patients and their lives.”
She combats this mechanical mentality of medicine by taking extra time to each of her patients on an individual basis.
“I try taking extra time to talk to them to really get to know them past their illness.”
Chang contributes her talkative behavior to her upbringing and family life.
Born to a Fujianese family in Schenectady, New York, Chang grew up with her parents’ high expectations always in her mind.
“My parents came to America with the mindset that their kids need to get the highest education possible. That’s why my brothers – one a pharmacist, one a lawyer – and I all got doctorates in our respective fields.”
Chang grew up with “TCM” or “Traditional Chinese Medicine.” She claims her parents were very old school and grew up with the mentality that herbal medicine and acupuncture were the key to solve any illness. Although when Chang was hospitalized with acute asthma exacerbation at a very young age, her parents had to learn to assimilate.
“My parents learned quickly with that experience that some medicines that are a part of the western world are necessary.”
And with this experience, Chang’s love for medicine grew.
After volunteering at a children’s hospital, Chang also realized she loved talking to people and getting to know them. She attributes that aspect of her personality to her life growing up as the “forgotten middle child” of her family.
“As a middle child I was ignored from time to time,” she said, chuckling. “So now I make sure to give my patients enough time to speak, unlike how I was treated back in the day.”
Chang loves talking to her patients and their families, making them feel comfortable and welcome. She says, however, there are some drawbacks.
“Once I had a patient who came in for a headache, but they found a previously undiagnosed tumor in her brain. I had to watch her parents cry, but because we found it early and we were able to work with it, they somehow found it in their hearts to be grateful to us.”
“It was one of the saddest experiences of my career, using my knack for talking to people to deliver such sad news. But in response to my words, the child’s parents uttered words that keep me going every time something goes badly for a patient: ‘Thank you for helping us, thank you for giving us hope, thank you for telling us it’ll be okay.’ Words like these make my job worthwhile.”
And although Chang makes it her mission to create a more cozy environment at her hospital, she acknowledges that it’s difficult to do with the amount of patients most doctors have per day.
“I like to think I’m efficient, but because I like to give my patients the opportunity to get settled, I guess I’m not as efficient as I could be.”
But Chang states that that is the least of her worries, as long as Dr. Chatty gets to converse with her patients for a reasonable amount of time.
