Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

Why recovery after illness demands dignity, not suspicion

Trisza Leann Ray, DO
Physician
May 26, 2025
Share
Tweet
Share

After twenty-five years of dedicated service as a physician, overcoming a severe neurological illness taught me that medicine embraces patient recovery—but not physician recovery. I never imagined returning to practice after illness would mean humiliation, suspicion, and unnecessary trauma. Yet, that is exactly what happened.

When my illness took me away from clinical practice for over three years, I anticipated hurdles returning to medicine. I understood the need for a competency evaluation. I expected questions, reviews, and even drug screenings. What I did not expect was being treated like a criminal.

The medical system equates absence from practice with substance abuse or disciplinary problems. Despite never experiencing substance abuse issues, I found that physician re-entry programs universally assumed that my absence stemmed from addiction. In reality, my illness was neurological—debilitating, yes, but unrelated to drugs or impairment.

To regain my license, I was required to undergo a “fit-for-duty” evaluation through the Oklahoma Health Professionals Program (OHPP). Even though several qualified evaluation facilities existed in Tulsa, where I live, OHPP insisted I travel to UF Health Addiction Medicine – Florida Recovery Center. The trip from Oklahoma cost over $6,000, a financial burden imposed without justification.

I arrived prepared for a urine drug screen—standard practice, understandable. Instead, I faced invasive demands for urine, blood, and either nail clippings or hair samples. Because I keep my nails short, nail testing was not possible. The technician then insisted on cutting a substantial plug of hair from my scalp—close to the root—totaling 150 grams.

When I refused this intrusive procedure, I was met with suspicion, as if my objection proved guilt. No informed consent occurred before the evaluation. I was not notified in advance that hair or nail testing would be required. Had I known, I could have grown my nails longer to comply less invasively. Instead, my refusal was painted as resistance, creating a humiliating confrontation.

Further compounding my distress, my urine sample collection involved a witness standing directly in front of me in the restroom. Again, no warning. No prior informed consent. The experience felt degrading and humiliating, stripping me of dignity and autonomy. This invasive scrutiny, aimed at detecting issues I never had, left me feeling violated, ashamed, and betrayed by my profession.

This traumatic encounter illuminates how physician re-entry programs unjustly equate absence from practice with misconduct or substance abuse. Physicians who recover from severe medical conditions are lumped together with impaired colleagues, forced through intrusive evaluations without transparency, consent, or respect.

Physicians deserve to recover from illness with dignity, not suspicion. The lack of dedicated re-entry programs designed specifically for physicians returning after medical leave creates a harmful stigma. Medical boards and state programs must create clear pathways and informed-consent-driven evaluations for physicians whose absence resulted from illness, not addiction or misconduct.

Without targeted support, we risk losing highly skilled, compassionate physicians simply because our health care system fails to respect them as individuals. Due to my traumatic evaluation, I seriously considered leaving medicine completely—a tragic loss rooted solely in unjust treatment.

Medicine should champion empathy and fairness, especially toward its own. Physicians recovering from illness deserve transparent processes, humane evaluations, and basic respect.

We must end this practice of treating physicians returning from illness as criminals. It is past time medicine heals its caregivers—not traumatizes them.

Trisza Leann Ray is a physician.

ADVERTISEMENT

Prev

How physicians can reclaim control over medical malpractice risks

May 26, 2025 Kevin 0
…
Next

More than a meeting: Finding education, inspiration, and community in internal medicine [PODCAST]

May 26, 2025 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Primary Care

Post navigation

< Previous Post
How physicians can reclaim control over medical malpractice risks
Next Post >
More than a meeting: Finding education, inspiration, and community in internal medicine [PODCAST]

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Trisza Leann Ray, DO

  • The invisible weight carried by Black female physicians

    Trisza Leann Ray, DO

Related Posts

  • I was trolled by another physician on social media. I am happy I did not respond.

    Casey P. Schukow, DO
  • Treating mental illness will not stop mass shootings

    M. Bennet Broner, PhD
  • The black physician’s burden

    Naomi Tweyo Nkinsi
  • A medical student’s physician inspiration

    Uju Momah
  • More physician responsibility for patient care

    Michael R. McGuire
  • Innovation insight and poetry from a physician-technologist [PODCAST]

    The Podcast by KevinMD

More in Physician

  • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

    Harvey Castro, MD, MBA
  • Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

    Kara Pepper, MD
  • How doctors took back control from hospital executives

    Gene Uzawa Dorio, MD
  • How art and science fueled one woman’s path to medicine

    Amy Avakian, MD
  • In a fractured world, Brian Wilson’s message still heals

    Arthur Lazarus, MD, MBA
  • Why being a physician mom is harder than anyone admits

    Cynthia Chen-Joea, DO, MPH
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Recent Posts

    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How Mark Twain would dismantle today’s flawed medical AI

      Neil Baum, MD and Mark Ibsen, MD | Tech
    • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

      Kara Pepper, MD | Physician
    • Graduating from medical school without family: a story of strength and survival

      Anonymous | Education
    • Inside human trafficking: a guide to recognizing and preventing it [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

View 1 Comments >

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Recent Posts

    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How Mark Twain would dismantle today’s flawed medical AI

      Neil Baum, MD and Mark Ibsen, MD | Tech
    • Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

      Harvey Castro, MD, MBA | Physician
    • Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

      Kara Pepper, MD | Physician
    • Graduating from medical school without family: a story of strength and survival

      Anonymous | Education
    • Inside human trafficking: a guide to recognizing and preventing it [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Why recovery after illness demands dignity, not suspicion
1 comments

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...