Week 4: Racism in the field

 Medicine is not an even playing field because much of our knowledge in it so from past history. This has created disparity, especially with people of color. This can be seen in all aspects of medicine and is shown in many different forms. One way is bias in doctors. In 2016 a study showed many white med students believed black people had a high pain tolerance, and 73% had one incorrect belief about biological race differences. These beliefs included thicker skin, less sensitive nerve endings, and stronger immune systems. Clinicians are likely to overlook symptoms of mental health and focus more on psychotic problems with black patients than with white patients, especially with men. And in medical textbooks symptom listings often do not note potential changes due to skin color. There are many more statistics that mirror this racial bias. Racial bias can be seen in representation with medical products as well. Up until recently all band-aids were pale colored to match white skin tones, and even now what is offered is still predominantly white. There aren't often people of color in medical advertisements, and first aid such as bandages and casts don't often come in skin tones other than white. Bias against people of color in medicine can be traced back to the 1700's, when slave masters worked with doctors. Many doctors at the time were explicitly racist and this racism was expressed in the studies we base our medical knowledge on today. Doctors while slavery was in affect also conducted experiments with new drugs and medications on unwilling and non-consenting slaves. The information in textbooks is based on slavery and is inherently racist.. Things like band-aids only coming in white creates a subconscious narrative that medicine only is for white people. Combining that with doctors who are racist or have a bias against racism makes that more of a reality.  In order to help reduce racism in doctors', sources need to be re-examined and re-written. Society needs to evaluate where information is coming from, and needs to showcase the new books and information it has which are written by black doctors and medical students, such as Mind the Gap: A Handbook of Clinical Signs in Black and Brown Skin by Malone Mukwende . 

Sources:

AlaskaX SWK 1x Introduction to Social Work

MedicalNewsToday, Racism in Healthcare: What you Need to Know

by Alana Biggers M.D

September 16, 2020