Bena Mae’s Kitchen: Take your hand off the doorknob

Over the past five years I have completed a rollodex of doctors beginning from gastroenterologists to urologists and everything in between. So I think that qualifies me for giving an educated opinion of the best and worst of my experience.  Some good, some not so good. And if you think this is a diatribe about doctors in general, think again. I admire them and am impressed by their dedication, hard work, and long hours. They must have a special calling to do the work they do.
But there is another side to the coin.  The patient. And I have found that some doctors missed class the day they taught ‘bedside manners.” I know, you’re paying for the doctors’ skills, but there is such a thing as a little TLC that is important in healing.
One of the biggest complaints I have is this: Doctors tend to over book. Now that’s not our fault. Still, it results in a 45 minute wait in the outer waiting room surrounded by sick coughing people who are sicker than you and are giving you a new disease to take home with you. Then a nurse ushers you to a smaller waiting room where you wait another 30 minutes, shivering and clad in a paper gown with nothing to do but read all the diplomas on the wall plus a large picture of your liver or colon.
The doctor finally arrives but doesn’t sit down. This is a bad sign. It means he’s in a hurry and wants to get on to the next patient. He stands there with his hand on the doorknob looking down the hall to the next waiting room. You attempt to tell him why you are there, but he’s reading a report in his hand and dismisses your complaint by looking at your chart. But the chart doesn’t tell the whole story. And you need assurances. After all, it is your life, your body.
Having your hand on the doorknob is a crummy way to have a conversation with a person who has entered the scary world of chronic illness.
I have just described the worst case scenario. Thankfully they are few and far between. I have encountered a couple of them but they’re gone now. I fired them. I am now under the care of a team of excellent doctors who work in tandem to keep my heart pumping, blood flowing and my white cell count at a comfortable level.  You might say I’ve won the lottery.
In no way is this article a dig at doctors today. There are many heroes among them and I salute them for the lives they have saved, the patients whose lives they have restored. I have only attempted to give the patients side of the story. And there are two sides to the story. We need to be listened to.

Be ready for peach season with this no- bake dessert.

Fresh Peach Dessert

16 whole graham crackers, crushed 3/4 cup butter, melted 1/2 cup white sugar 4 1/2 cups miniature marshmallows 1/4 cup milk
1 pint heavy cream 1/3 cup white sugar 6 large fresh peaches – peeled, pitted and sliced
Combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and 1/2 cup sugar in a mixing bowl. Mix until evenly moistened, re- serve 1/4 cup of the mixture for the top- ping. Press the remaining mixture into the bottom of a 9×13-inch baking dish.
Heat marshmallows and milk in a large saucepan over low heat and stir until the marshmallows are completely melted. Re- move from heat and cool.
Whip cream in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Beat in 1/3 cup sugar until the cream forms stiff peaks. Fold the whipped cream into the cooled marshmallow mixture.
Spread 1/2 the cream mixture over the crust, arrange the peaches on top of the cream, then spread the remaining cream mixture over the peaches. Sprinkle the re- served crumb mixture over the cream. Refrigerate until serving.