Part A (Brief description of chief complaint):
Psoriasis is a skin disorder affecting individuals with an underlying genetic predisposition who have been exposed to a “triggering event” such as an infection or medication. Psoriasis manifests as a red, scaly, intensely itchy rash that can occur anywhere, but are especially prevalent on the head, elbows and knees. The rash bleeds easily when picked and can even cause other symptoms like pain in the hands and back, as well as finger and toe nail disfiguration.
Part B (Poem):
I itch my arm, I don’t even realize I do it anymore
It bleeds, it usually does
I don’t realize when that happens anymore
I do realize when people stare, that’s harder to get used to
And they never stop, never
I feel like the lepers of biblical times
They were deemed unclean to live among others
I’m deemed unfit to be ignored
So I pick, I bleed, people gawk
Med students analyze
Tired residents check me off their list of “to-dos”
Attendings use me as a teaching point
But they stare too, they all do
And they never stop, never
I get jealous of the other disorders
Things like burns, broken bones, cancer even
At least people know they can’t get cancer from being around people with it
People always wonder if they can get what I have
Then I feel guilty for that thought
At least this won’t kill me
But I would give the anything for it to stop
Jesus healed the leper
If he came and healed me I wouldn’t forget to say thank you
I wonder if he’d stare too