Robin Freeman

I am an OB/Gyn physician. I entered into retirement when my father’s critical illness warranted my sudden move back to New Jersey in 2017. I returned home to assist in his illness which quickly resulted in end-stage medical care. He passed away in December 2018, but I am glad to have used my medical knowledge and a daughter’s love to assist him when he needed me the most. Shortly after this tragic event, I needed to care for my aging mother. She was 91, and the sequela of the aging process prevented her from living an independent lifestyle. She suffered a debilitating fall in January 2021, which resulted in a hip fracture. She had a hip replacement and recovered at a rehabilitation center during COVID. COVID protocol caused the heartbreaking quarantine of a 91-year-old woman that was detrimental to her mental health and physical recovery. Sadly, her outcome was in the percentage of those who did not recover from that traumatic event. During the throws of COVID, the significant individual patient need was overlooked. I witnessed the helpless suffering of a dementia patient that could have been minimized if a person in a pivotal role could have been that patient's voice, a patient advocate with medical knowledge. I also had the privilege of treating her through her hospice care, medically and with her to the end, and providing patient and family care/support.

In my profession, I have treated patients from the beginning of life with pregnancy to the end of life with geriatric care. I have seen the stages from pregnancy to the grave. I feel my skill will be most needed, in part, serving patients that need the most, the seniors with no voice. I am intimately aware of the sadness and the needs of seniors with dementia. Dementia is a debilitating disease. My goal is to provide Medical and family care. When dealing with dementia, the loved ones are thrust onto an unavoidable merry-go-round with their loved ones. The family must cope with: memory loss that results in the inescapable verbal repetition, exposure to seesawed emotions, and their loved ones' overall and overwhelming regression. This condition/situation makes the family members feel frustrated, helpless, and heartbroken.

My goal is to be a bridge in that process and help the family help the patient deal with the disease by being a catalyst. Assist the family in making necessary adjustments, thereby getting them off that merry-go-round. In addition to treating the patient, helping the family will have a positive domino effect on the patient's care. This would be accomplished by providing their medical care with the knowledge of their emotional and social needs. This process would include treating the family and understanding their needs and struggles. Their interaction with the ill patient impacts the patient illness and recovery. This revelation and desire prompted my decision to obtain a master's in Wellness and Lifestyle management. It helped open my eyes and provide the necessary tools to fill the gap and provide the fill-in care so that the transition from this life could be done without neglect or regret.

During my practice, an essential service was to educate my patients regarding issues concerning their medical issues and indirect matters that could impact their overall health. There is more to a patent than the isolated physical issue that erupts, resulting in an office visit. Patients present with short-term and long-term needs that contribute to their physical state, and good medical care should address both. Education was a vast and successful part of my practice, and I would like that to continue. Part of my endeavors also is to provide a seamless mentorship. I could teach and provide clinical expertise and experience. I would be able to teach them in the classroom and the clinic setting to effectively merge the two. This would offer students continuity with a teach and show experience. I could combine my clinical knowledge, personal experience, and teaching ability to provide comprehensive service from the classroom to a birth experience, the hospital bedside, and ultimately to the grave. Allow my students to experience the patient journey from the first breath to the last, the beginning to the end.

Additionally, I would like to provide a medical platform, an ask the Doc, radio opportunity to better reach and teach the public on the medical issue most crippling and needed screens. It is time to give back and help those who do not know how to help themselves or cannot do so.