African American U.S. Health Care Professionals and Prejudice Climates
A lot of times people assume that only African American patients are the ones who experience racism in a medical setting. However, many people don’t realize that black medical professionals fall under that category as well. Going into medical training or a medical field is a battle of itself. There are scenarios that are unpredictable and need proper execution, there are days that are much harder than others, and there is a lot that is asked of from a person in this field. Black health care professionals uncommonly experience unfortunate and uncalled for days throughout their training and their career due to Racial microaggressions.
Many black doctors or medical graduates share their stories of white medical professionals (who rank higher than them) or white patients that bluntly say racist remarks to their face or other black colleges. In the article,”Medical Schools Have Historically Been Wrong on Race” by Damon Tweedy share some of the alarming recollections of his time spent in medical school. Tweedy states ,”I still vividly recall the afternoon many years ago when a patient angrily suggested that I go back to Africa and stay there, and the shrug that my white supervisor offered when I told him what happened. I’ll also never forget when a Muslim student’s name was openly mocked by a senior doctor who questioned whether he was a terrorist. Nor will I forget the moments I saw Black patients’ intelligence, motivation and truthfulness derisively questioned.” These types of encounters have lasting impacts on people who go through this. Tweedy keeps mentioning that he will never forget these events, and can you blame him? Being in an environment that allows racist remarks of any kind is dehumanizing. Tweedy was caught in the fire of prejudice alongside his colleague as well as black patients. Seeing this type of treatment towards black people or people of color is common. In the article,”Being Mentored Helps Black Medical Students Face Isolation, Racial Microaggressions” by Farah Yousry writes about a fourth year black medical student who has faced his hard shares in medical school. Yousry wrote, “Hill said, ’I’ve had patients tell nurses that they don’t want Black physicians.’ ” This type of racial Microaggression is something that is still requested in today’s society. It is not a morally right thing to ask someone to not have a black doctor due to their skin color. Whereas, it’s more understanding for a black patient to request a black physician due to all the racial entanglements they experience.
In one study,”Racism as Experienced by Physicians of Color in the Health Care Setting” by Kelly Serafini has evidence showing that physicians of color experience racial microaggressions at work, and how it affects them. These physicians, who are a part of this study, openly discuss the lack of respect they get because of their race. Some are overlooked for higher positions, some of them are held to higher standards or are expected to do more work, and in other instances they are excluded because of their race or ethnicity. These racial microaggressions they experience are often thought about when they leave their workplace. It’s a burden being looked down upon. Some of the physicians even reported being depressed and needing a therapist to cope with the impacts of racism in their line of work. It is a really unsettling reality that a lot of physicians of color go through.
Imagine being a black doctor who has to help someone who represents white supremacy. In this article “The patient called me ‘colored girl.’ The senior doctor training me said nothing” by Jennifer Adaeze Okwerekwu discusses some jarring times she experienced during training for medical school at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. Okwerekwu shares, “During my obstetrics and gynecology rotation, I helped perform a prenatal ultrasound on a woman wearing a Confederate flag shirt. Her husband and son watched. Both were wearing Confederate flag hats and belts.” That encounter had to leave Okwerekwu, a black trainee, feeling on edge the entire time. The confederate flag is associated with states rights, slavery, racism, and other white southern heritage customs behind it. Who in their right minds would have their family decked in that attire and proceed to go to the doctors office? Okwerekwu said that she “wonders if her patients hated her.” This is a highly unfavorable situation that occured, because it shows that black colleagues of medicine are subjected to workdays that cater to racial tension.
There is a lot that can be said and heard about black medical professionals. What could be said should not relate to racist remarks. There are ways to lessen these occurrences black healthcare professionals run into. In this article,”Racism in Health Care Isn’t Always Obvious” by Joseph V. Sakran gives ways to combat racism in healthcare. Sakran writes, “How can we as a medical community address this issue? We believe it begins with understanding our own privilege and biases, and we believe it is critical that all our colleagues — regardless of race — join us without delay. We call on medical institutions and associations to require implicit bias training for all healthcare workers, including as part of initial and ongoing medical certification. States such as California have already passed legislation mandating implicit bias training for some physicians; hence there is no reason why we can’t expand this to all doctors and health care providers across the country.”
