SCVNews.com | Opinion/Commentary: Hairline Difference | Doctor’s Diary with Dr. Gene Dorio

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1808 - Ygnacio del Valle born in Jalisco, Mexico; owned most of SCV [story]

Hairline Difference | Doctor’s Diary with Dr. Gene Dorio

Dr. Gene Dorio | Friday, Jun 5, 2020

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As a teenager, my father took me to Metropolitan State Mental Hospital several times, not for admission, but to learn how mental health affected his clients. He was a Los Angeles County social worker for decades, and knowing my interest in medicine, he felt it was an opportunity to put my feet in someone else’s shoes.

While he saw clients, I interacted with patients in their social living area. (Confidentiality and HIPAA laws did not exist.) For hours, I’d watch football, play cards and shoot the breeze, recognizing there was only a hairline difference between us.

Fast-forward to Santa Clarita, where my neighborhood is filled with first responders, many in law enforcement. They are honest, fair, and good parents of different backgrounds, races and genders. All condemn the Minneapolis officers.

They know they are being held smart-phone-camera accountable, and they have no problem with it. But as I put myself in their shoes, law enforcement is difficult because of the firearms available to criminals. Every day, they worry about not coming home to their families.

We must realize there is only a hairline difference between all of us. From this, putting our feet into someone’s shoes will become easier.

Gene Uzawa Dorio, M.D., is a geriatric house-call physician who serves as president of the Los Angeles County Commission for Older Adults and Assemblyman to the California Senior Legislature. He has practiced in the Santa Clarita Valley for 32 years.

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Mayor Smyth’s July Message: A Salute to Our Hometown Heroes

Wednesday, Jul 1, 2020

July is filled with warm, sunny days and one of the city of Santa Clarita’s favorite holidays - the Fourth of July.

A Little Girl’s Cry | Doctor’s Diary with Dr. Gene Dorio

Tuesday, Jun 30, 2020

Attempting to care for mental health problems, homelessness, and other social ills should not be placed in the realm of law enforcement.

For the Grandkids | Doctor’s Diary with Dr. Gene Dorio

Saturday, Jun 27, 2020

Today marks my 100th consecutive day of posting a commentary on COVID-19, and most recently BLM. These two events of 2020 will be forever etched in history, yet we are still living though evolving changes daily.

What Race Are You? | Doctor’s Diary with Dr. Gene Dorio

Friday, Jun 26, 2020

For years, I have been aware of my biracial background, and now I can identify with the fastest growing “race” in the Untied States – the mixed race. This was extended further with DNA analysis as I’ve discovered I am triracial.

Showing Toughness | Doctor’s Diary with Dr. Gene Dorio

Thursday, Jun 25, 2020

If my father were still alive, I would be peppering him with questions about how he and his family pursued daily life with the pandemic of 1918 all around them.

Techno State | Doctor’s Diary with Dr. Gene Dorio

Wednesday, Jun 24, 2020

California is a technologically rich state. During this pandemic, we should retool industry and manufacture masks, gowns, gloves, hand sanitizers, cleaning bactericides and all PPEs. Even for people who are bedridden and paralyzed, we can develop techology to allow them to live independently at home.

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