At this Charlotte clinic, senior health care is like family

PHOTO | AALIYAH BOWDEN

Dr. LaToya Fulton (left) poses outside of Dedicated Senior Medical Center with patient Gloria Smitherman and Cierra Merriweather, the center's director.

Gloria Smitherman has been diagnosed with high blood pressure for most of her life.  

In the past, doctors prescribed medications to lower Smitherman’s levels, rather than trying to find out why her pressure was elevated. In 2021, when Dedicated Senior Medical Center opened within walking distance of her house, Smitherman was excited.

At this clinic, she is finally getting her blood pressure under control thanks to the personal relationship she has with her doctor.

“First thing I noticed was Dr. [LaToya] Fulton wasn't rushing with me,'' Smitherman said.  “Fifteen minutes had passed and she's still in the room and we're talking about my concerns, and she was listening.”

April is Stress Awareness Month. Stress can cause a range of health issues from hypertension, heart disease, diabetes, and lead to death. Studies show stress can age anyone and lead to mental health issues as seniors.

“If someone has mental health issues, being stressed out, makes those conditions worse as well,” said Fulton, a primary care physician at the clinic. “It's like a ripple effect. It starts out at one thing, and it leads to another and then we find everything being out of order.”

Dedicated Senior Medical Center understands how stress impacts the senior patient population daily along with their caregivers and loved ones. Dedicated has two local centers that provide high-touch affordable, VIP, value-based primary care to seniors.

Seniors should go to routine doctor visits.

“You could be on the bridge of having a stroke and not even realize it and so us monitoring that will allow us to pinpoint those things,” Fulton said.

Prior to going to Dedicated Senior Medical Center, Smitherman only went to see her doctor every six months. But now she goes once a month. One thing Smitherman, 78, loves about the clinic is the staff and how they bend over backwards for patients. After losing three close relatives in the past couple of months, Dedicated Senior Medical Center supported her through a difficult time.

“The staff had such a wonderful card for me of condolences for my loved ones,” she said.  “With everybody signing it having a little note on here, it just tore me apart. Just the love that was shown to me — I'm talking about my doctor's office. I'm not talking about my church. I'm not talking about a social club. I'm talking about my primary doctor's office.”

Smitherman has been a patient at Dedicated Senior Medical Center for almost a year now. She has faith that if she follows Fulton’s dietary recommendations, her blood pressure will get better.

Fulton recommended she eat more fruits and vegetables, cut out poultry, and exercise more.

“But for seniors, for people over 55, we want to know that you care, too,” said Smitherman, who has four children and six grandchildren. “We want to know that you're not just giving us a test because you know Medicare or somebody you know is going to be paid for. We want to know that we're in the hands of someone who's listening to how we feel. We know our own body.”

Aaliyah Bowden, who covers health at The Post, is a Report For America corps member. 

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