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 Pedro Gonzalez, PA-C
The author is a PA and an entrepreneur in Los Angeles, Calif. He has indicated no relationships to disclose relating to the content of this article.
The PA profession was foreign to me, growing up as I did in the streets of East Los Angeles. In those days I would have never guessed the enormous possibilities in this great career. The profession has given me the knowledge and experience to deal with the harsh realities of East LA and to help people there in ways I never would have thought possible. I’ve been very fortunate to find work that allows me to contribute to the health of individual patients and to the greater health of the community. Recently, I worked with three partners to establish a bakery, Mi Vida–My Life, that offers healthy products to help prevent diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. We have a Web site (www.mividamylife.com) and a retail store in Lynwood, Calif. We have clients like Bristol Farms Deli Department (California), The Delivery Zone/Sunfare.com (Arizona, California), and Natural Slim (Puerto Rico). We are also approved vendors for the Obesity Prevention Program at the Los Angeles Unified School District. The retail store sells an array of bread loaves, tortillas, cookies, and Mexican sweet bread. It’s been a humbling experience for our bakery to receive national media attention from several television stations and newspapers. The bakery also houses the Homeboy Industries bakery training program, where former gang members work side by side with regular workers and with each other to gain skills to help them redirect their lives. Nationally recognized by First Lady Laura Bush, Homeboy Industries (www.homeboy-industries.org) is an employment referral center and economic development program that assists 1,000 people a month. “Nothing stops a bullet like a job” is its guiding principle.
The Homeboy Bakers pose with Pedro Gonzalez and Father Boyle at the groundbreaking ceremony.
The principles of the PA profession include caring for the underserved and helping the less fortunate. I try to do this by giving back to those from my childhood community and by telling my story to inspire others to do the same. I believe that what I do is much needed by people who deserve a second chance at life and who are “a whole lot more than the worst thing they’ve ever done.”
7:00 AM (Monday, Friday)
On Monday and Friday mornings, I’m at the bakery to oversee its management and to hold group talks with the regular employees and the Homeboy bakers to foster open communication. These talks help the Homeboy bakers, many of whom have been incarcerated, make the transition from highly regulated prison life to life on the outside, with its flexible boundaries. I also make follow-up calls to clients and schedule meetings. Some bakery clients are walk-in customers whose health we monitor. Most thank us for producing great products that have helped them control their health problems. We schedule monthly group meetings for members of the community, where we discuss a variety of diseases. These meetings are fun, and they let me educate the community in a relaxed atmosphere with no stethoscope draped around my neck. We were also honored with invitations from the American Heart Association Health Partners program and the Latino Diabetes Association to present educational sessions as well.
11:00 AM to 5:00 PM (Monday, Friday)
On Mondays and Fridays, I also work in a pediatrics practice, where my day is full of physical exams and upper respiratory infections. Among my favorite parts are the well-child visits from kids 2 weeks to 1 year old, and I enjoy calming parents’ worries about their children’s progress. Then, it’s off to administer vaccinations and watch an adorable baby’s face become a siren of crying. Last week, I sutured a child’s lacerated forearm after a skateboard accident. To my surprise, he was very happy about the situation. When I asked him why, he said, “Now I don’t have to do chores for 2 or 3 weeks.” This made me laugh.
9 AM to 12:30 PM (Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday)
These mornings, I work in a community-based internal medicine/family practice clinic where many of the patients are geriatric and most are Latino or Asian. I’m the only Spanish-speaking clinician at this clinic, which attends to approximately 55 patients per day. Two physicians and I treat patients with a variety of diseases, from diabetes to cancer. I do 95% of the clinical work and act as a translator when needed, under the guidance of my medical director. At times, I talk with my patients about quality of life, and it’s then that I reflect on my own life and health. From time to time, I listen to my own heart and lungs to make sure I am ticking and breathing correctly! I get a kick out of trying to communicate in different languages, and in response I often get an appreciative pat on my cheek or shoulder, a bow, or a heavily accented “Thank you.”
1:30 PM to 6 PM (Wednesday, Thursday)
On Wednesday and Thursday afternoons, I work at Homeboy Industries’ Ya ’Stuvo (That’s Enough) Tattoo Removal Program in East Los Angeles. I began there as a volunteer, but now I’m a senior staff person, and part of what I do is train other clinicians in tattoo removal. The program provides accessible, no-cost tattoo removal services to former gang members of all races who voluntarily enroll. Tattoos of the kind we work on are stigmatizing and prevent those who have them from getting and keeping jobs and from integrating socially in other ways. We give priority to those with gang tattoos visible on the face, head, neck, or fingers and to those with children. A typical day is filled with approximately 20 patients, about one third female.
The author removes a tattoo from a female patient.
A typical treatment session goes like this: The patient walks in looking concerned, and 95% of the time the first question is, “Does it hurt?” I explain the procedure, the complications, and the results that can be realistically expected with our Palomar Q-YAG 5 laser. We prep using universal precautions and begin the treatment with a test shot from the laser. Many patients can withstand the burning feeling, but if the pain is intolerable we offer an anesthetic cream at no cost to the patient. On average, 6 to 8 treatments per tattoo are required, and even though treatments are painful, virtually 100% of patients complete the process. Sometimes reporters, college students, or community activists from all over the world stop by to learn about and from Homeboy Industries. On occasion, patients give these visitors permission to observe the treatment. Visitors have described the experience as “surreal, like something out of National Geographic.”
After treatment, the patient scrutinizes the results in the mirror, usually with some astonishment. We apply antibiotic ointment, dress the area with gauze, and provide preprinted after-care instructions. To date, I have performed more than 1,000 treatments that would have cost patients $250,000 if they had had to pay. My supervising physician meets with me once a week to see how treatments are progressing.
I try also to expand the program by searching for new clinicians to volunteer. We recently received a $50,000 donation to buy a second laser machine, and we’ve increased our waiting list to approximately 2,000 people. If you’re ever in the area and would like a tour or have time to volunteer, please stop by. Our phone number is (323) 526-1254.
I always wanted to come back to the inner city where I was born and raised and provide culturally sensitive health care. Becoming a PA has allowed me to make my dreams a reality in more ways than one. God bless the profession for the gifts it has given me, professionally, physically, and spiritually.
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