October 01, 2005
While applying for PA school, I shadowed a PA at a busy pediatric clinic. During a wellness visit, the PA asked a 16-year-old male if he had a girlfriend. The young man shifted his gaze downward and bashfully answered "no." The PA had assumed that this patient was heterosexual when to me he appeared to be gay. This assumption, however benign it may seem on the exterior, probably sent a subtle yet powerful message to this young man: It's not okay to be gay; you aren't like the rest of us.