Dr. Svetlana Kleyman is a 31-year-old chief surgery resident with a heart of gold who works 16-hour days and runs marathons in her free time. Just 18 months before she was to graduate from SUNY Downstate, she developed a spinal infection that left her paralyzed from the waist down. After months of rehab, she was cleared by her doctors to resume work. With proper accommodations, surgeons like Svetlana can continue to operate successfully, and she was ready to return to the operating room. Her surgery residency told her not to come back.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination against Americans with disabilities, and employers must make reasonable accommodations. Medical institutions and their governing agencies such as the ACGME (Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education) should demonstrate the highest degree of medical ethics as they set the standards for medical education and thus patient care. Discrimination based on any medical condition is intolerable in our nation's hospitals, clinics, and medical schools.
Please sign this petition to demand that Dr. Svetlana Kleyman be allowed to complete her final year of surgical training so she can serve patients as the breast cancer surgeon she has always dreamed of becoming.
Dear ACGME and SUNY Downstate Surgery Residency,
This petition is in support of Dr. Svetlana Kleyman's appeal to complete her surgery residency. Just 18 months before she was to graduate from SUNY Downstate, Svetlana developed a spinal infection that left her paralyzed from the waist down. She completed months of rehab and was cleared to resume work (with proper accommodations surgeons continue to operate successfully). Though Svetlana was ready to return to the operating room, she was told not to come back.
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination against Americans with disabilities and employers must make reasonable accommodations. Medical institutions and their governing agencies such as the ACGME should demonstrate the highest degree of medical ethics as they set the standards for medical education and thus patient care. Discrimination based on any medical condition is intolerable in our nation's hospitals, clinics, and medical schools.
We the undersigned support Dr. Svetlana Kleyman's right to complete her final year of surgical training so she can serve patients as the breast cancer surgeon she has always dreamed of becoming.
Thank you for your timely consideration in this matter.
Pamela Wible, M.D.
