From their first phone call to SeaMar and at each appointment, patients can communicate in Spanish, and interpreters are on-call for other languages. The Seattle Indian Health Board reflects the Native American cultures of its patients. Confronting violence or substance abuse is as much a part of the job as treating patients who are trying to do the best they can. Some people can't take time off from their jobs to recover, don't have any food in the house, or may not be able to afford medication. Residents must learn how to fit a treatment plan into their patient's means, Malloy said.
Residents use their imagination and the advice of experienced physicians.
Some residents, for instance, ask pharmaceutical companies to donate medications for their patients. With the demands of patient care, it would seem that training residents would be an added burden. On the contrary, some community physicians say teaching renews them. Cullison believes that further solutions to urban health problems may lie waiting in the minds of those growing up in the inner city. When a child in an examining room sees Cullison instructing a resident, and asks about becoming a doctor, he takes the time to answer.