By Salvador G. Valdez
Does going to your doctor makes you a bit uneasy? Do you feel uncomfortable? When there is a hint for making an excuse, do you more than welcome it? Are you one of those that goes into “white coat panic” and your blood pressure elevates?
Would you not prefer a doctor that does not look down his nose at you as though you know truly little and his communication leaves you with your mouth wide opened. How about a doctor that goes about like an everyday person and you would not know he is a doctor unless someone told you? Many of his friends he interacts with in his off-duty hours do not know that he is a doctor, nor does he feel compel to announce himself as a medical professional.
Meet Jose Marin, an unassuming person that is becoming the model for a patient friendly doctor in El Paso and in our sister city Juarez. Dr. Marin practices general medicine at his facility in East El Paso, Transmountain Primary Care. What makes him so special? Well, every patient knows what to them feels like a good doctor. A patient does not need the medical certificates to tell them that the doctor is first of all a human being and the health care of his patients is in front of his priorities.
All the way from Sinaloa, Mexico, at age of seventeen he traveled to Juarez to study medicine. Taking on a complete independent approach from his parents, he took on his goal of becoming a doctor. Taking work as a male nurse, he managed to pay for his studies.
Small of stature but with a giant spirit towards achieving; he pursued his medical studies. He at first had notions of achieving in the gridiron field. Yes, these doctors entertain visions of becoming a wide receiver in an American football team. His athletic notions soon dissipated as he recognized that medicine was a time demanding goal.
His first attempt was in becoming a cardiologist, and as a digestive system specialist. His studies took him to Monterrey to study to be a surgeon. He holds multiple degrees in surgery and practices in Juarez.
In Mexico, they require doctors and surgeons to do social work and he met his requirement by serving in Puerto Las Palomas, Mexico, the town south of Columbus, New Mexico. He practices at several medical facilities in Juarez as a surgeon including in a small facility called Fatima.
Though his philosophy is not to cross lines when it comes to medical practice, he is an everyday commuter between crossing the borders of these adjacent cities.
Every day as he finishes his rounds in Juarez he turns into: Super General Doctor. Why, do I use such a superlative on this humble medical professional? How many main doctors do you know that have different types of specialties and have a general practitioner’s degree? So, when he refers you to a specialist, he is more than qualified to choose a doctor for you.
I asked him about his approach to bedside manner. He answered, Mexico has a much more intimate approach than what you see in the US. We tend to lean to the humanity side. With the insurance coverage’s being as they are a patient should take charge of his own health problems. After assessing the patient’s insurance coverage, it is his responsibility to find ways to have the insurance meet the demands that the patient might need to take care of his health needs. We look at the patient’s entire health and we are always seeing the patient where a specialist performs his duty, and you are on your own.
He advises on the patient through suggestions. He emphasizes that his suggestions to the patient will be limited if the patient does not follow up with taking his medicine as require and meeting his appointments. His gentle approach in his communications and his willingness to listen brings comfort to the patient. You wonder if any of today’s busy doctors always on the go have ever listened with a heart that bridges your confidence in your primary care physician. If there is any benefit of being treated as a human you have a head start by being one of the many patients to be treated by my doctor, Jose Marin.