Sister Doctor Brooks

This picture is from a few years ago. I've included it because of the woman in the middle, Sister Doctor Brooks. She retired last year but her footprint and part of her heart remain here in Tutwiler. The other day a few of us walked across the road and visited the clinic. Our tour guide and story teller was Cindy a staff member who worked with Dr. Brooks and is gathering memoribilia to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Dr. Brooks work here in Tutwiler. When Dr. Brooks came here in 1983 the first thing she did was get rid of the colored waiting room and the colored drinking fountain. You read that right, 1983! There are many stories to tell but I'll just give some background and then bring us to present day. One day a number of years ago a man came in with a broken leg. She asked him what had happened and he told her that his foot went right through his porch. From this came her idea to bring Habitat to Tutwiler. The next thing that came to her attention was all of the children running around with nothing to do. She raised enough money to build a community center. She had a patient who didn't take his medicine because he couldn't read and didn't know when to take it. So... GED classes at the community center. Grandmothers were stuck at home caring for their grandchildren... a quilting program for the grandmas and more programing for the kids.

We asked Cindy about the current issues for the clinic and the patients. The cycle of poverty is evident if you look not just for what is present but for what is absent. A grocery store? Nope. The nearest grocery store used to be in Clarksdale, 16 miles away. It closed this year. Now the nearest grocery store is a 45 minute drive. (There is a Walmart in Clarksdale which carries food, just not in the quantity or variety of a grocery store) The only place you can buy food in Tutwiler is at the Double Quick gas station. They do have some hot food, of the fried variety. You can get: fried chicken, fried shrimp, and fried okra. This leads me to the next problem, diabetes. Close to 40% of the clinic's patients are diabetic. Limited food choices, limited money, difficult travel options... You may look around the dirt roads and crumbling buildings and wonder where people find work. The largest employer in the area has been the Tallahatchie County Correctional facility. There are a number of prisions in the area all privately owned. The one closest to Tutwiler has been gradually sending its prisoners to California. the prison population has gone from 2,300 to 400. Jobs have always been hard to find now it is even more difficult.

We asked Cindy to tell us a success story. The community center has recently started a Weight Watchers group. (They received a grant to cover the membership fees.) As a group they have already lost 550 pounds! One of the women came back after a doctor visit and said that she was able to get off her high blood pressure medication and reduce her cholesterol medication.

Finally Cindy told us of their newest nurse practitioner, Sabrina Easter. She called about the job on Good Friday.  The clinic continues in the spirit of Dr. Brooks, they always find a way to treat everyone regardless of their ability to pay. You can find more information about the clinic and Dr. Brooks at tutwilerclinic.org