Founder & CEO • TIME100 Health • Instant NYT best-selling Author, LEGACY: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine 👩🏾⚕️🩺
For speaking inquiries 👉🏿 Penguin Random House Speakers Bureau
Thank you to Nia McLean of CNN for interviewing me for this piece, “Why Black Women are pushing to diversify health care industry”.
“To increase representation, Blackstock said we also must address the barriers that prevent people of color from becoming physicians in the first place, such as racism, microaggressions and access to education.
After 10 years in academic medicine, Blackstock told CNN she left her job in 2019 because she “felt so undervalued and underappreciated as a Black woman physician.” That same year she founded Advancing Health Equity with the goal of partnering with health care organizations to dismantle racism in health care and to close the gap in racial health inequities.
“How do we make sure that in medical school, residency, and faculty positions, the leadership of these organizations are prioritizing environments where Black physicians and health professionals can thrive, not just survive?” she said.”
We know this work is a matter of life and death for our communities and patients!!
Link: https://lnkd.in/ezfJ9tcF
Founder & CEO • TIME100 Health • Instant NYT best-selling Author, LEGACY: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine 👩🏾⚕️🩺
For speaking inquiries 👉🏿 Penguin Random House Speakers Bureau
Thank you to Nia McLean of CNN for interviewing me for this piece, “Why Black Women are pushing to diversify health care industry”.
“To increase representation, Blackstock said we also must address the barriers that prevent people of color from becoming physicians in the first place, such as racism, microaggressions and access to education.
After 10 years in academic medicine, Blackstock told CNN she left her job in 2019 because she “felt so undervalued and underappreciated as a Black woman physician.” That same year she founded Advancing Health Equity with the goal of partnering with health care organizations to dismantle racism in health care and to close the gap in racial health inequities.
“How do we make sure that in medical school, residency, and faculty positions, the leadership of these organizations are prioritizing environments where Black physicians and health professionals can thrive, not just survive?” she said.”
We know this work is a matter of life and death for our communities and patients!!
Link: https://lnkd.in/ezfJ9tcF
Systemic racism infiltrates even the institutions (non-profit organizations, and programs) designed to combat it within health systems. Confronting this pervasive issue means acknowledging that the very inequalities academia thrives on drive these disparities. Researchers, often take from the communities they study to feed the machine that is academia and solidify themselves as professionals, they then make recommendations that the solution to equity is uplifting community voices, but then exclude those same voices (and their expertise) under the guise of professionalism. It's time for a candid self-assessment.
“I need people to see how systemic racism behaves."
When Dr. Uché Blackstock, MD left her faculty position in academic medicine four years ago, she had no way of knowing she was making a life-or-death decision. After enduring years of racism and sexism in a toxic work environment, she’d had enough and decided to prioritize her own mental health and well-being.
Now, on the heels of the release of her debut memoir, "Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine," which also takes a critical look at the intersection of racism and healthcare, Blackstock is grateful she chose herself.
In n 2019, Blackstock founded her consultancy, Advancing Health Equity, as a way to dismantle racism in healthcare by partnering with health organizations to diversify their hiring and combat racial health inequities. With Black women accounting for less than 3% of U.S. doctors (even though Black people make up 13% of the U.S. population), Blackstock is aware that training more Black physicians is only part of the solution.
“I would love for there to be more Black physicians because that can help to solve the problem,” she says in a video interview with Fortune. “But the other piece of it is we need physicians who are not Black to be able to adequately and competently care for Black people as well.”
Read more: bit.ly/3Sxn36R
“I need people to see how systemic racism behaves."
When Dr. Uché Blackstock, MD left her faculty position in academic medicine four years ago, she had no way of knowing she was making a life-or-death decision. After enduring years of racism and sexism in a toxic work environment, she’d had enough and decided to prioritize her own mental health and well-being.
Now, on the heels of the release of her debut memoir, "Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine," which also takes a critical look at the intersection of racism and healthcare, Blackstock is grateful she chose herself.
In n 2019, Blackstock founded her consultancy, Advancing Health Equity, as a way to dismantle racism in healthcare by partnering with health organizations to diversify their hiring and combat racial health inequities. With Black women accounting for less than 3% of U.S. doctors (even though Black people make up 13% of the U.S. population), Blackstock is aware that training more Black physicians is only part of the solution.
“I would love for there to be more Black physicians because that can help to solve the problem,” she says in a video interview with Fortune. “But the other piece of it is we need physicians who are not Black to be able to adequately and competently care for Black people as well.”
Read more: bit.ly/3Sxn36R
“Legacy: A Black physician reckons with racism in medicine” by Uche Blackstock, M.D.
Racism is definitely rampant in major medical research centers associated with major medical schools, in independent large research institutes, in large corporate clinical practices, in surgical operating rooms, and in private physicians’ offices.
For many years after the civil war, all the PWI medical schools refused to admit Black students. The medical and surgical associations also refused to admit Black physicians as members, thus necessitating the creation of separate associations for Black physicians. After the PWI medical schools decided to admit Black students, Black students were faced with racist professors, racist patients, racist nurses, and racist administrators. Young Black medical students and physicians-in-training opted for silence when faced with racist tormentors because of fear of being labeled difficult, troublemakers, or ingrates-“we let you in our schools/hospitals but this is the way that you are paying us back”. I had been labeled an ingrate because I vehemently disagreed with the way I was being treated. When their racism is mentioned, European American healthcare professionals or scientists claim that they are too well educated and respected to engage in racist behaviors. This statement would imply that slave owners were not respected by other European Americans, Nazi physicians were not well educated and respected by other Germans, Japanese officers soldiering and tormenting people in China and Korea were not well educated and respected by Japanese people etc. These kinds of statements take gaslighting and lying to a new absurd level.
Dr. Uche Blackstock chose COURAGE and HERSELF and opted out of the racist system where she was working. She showed much more courage than many of us who had chosen ‘the devil we knew’.
I have the book and I have started to read it. I spread the news of its publication at my place of work. Please spread the news where you work. Tell your friends. You don’t have to be a physician to identify with her vicissitudes because racism in medicine has had lethal consequences for patients.
Don’t fight racists in SILENCE. Silence is COMPLICITY.
“I need people to see how systemic racism behaves."
When Dr. Uché Blackstock, MD left her faculty position in academic medicine four years ago, she had no way of knowing she was making a life-or-death decision. After enduring years of racism and sexism in a toxic work environment, she’d had enough and decided to prioritize her own mental health and well-being.
Now, on the heels of the release of her debut memoir, "Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine," which also takes a critical look at the intersection of racism and healthcare, Blackstock is grateful she chose herself.
In n 2019, Blackstock founded her consultancy, Advancing Health Equity, as a way to dismantle racism in healthcare by partnering with health organizations to diversify their hiring and combat racial health inequities. With Black women accounting for less than 3% of U.S. doctors (even though Black people make up 13% of the U.S. population), Blackstock is aware that training more Black physicians is only part of the solution.
“I would love for there to be more Black physicians because that can help to solve the problem,” she says in a video interview with Fortune. “But the other piece of it is we need physicians who are not Black to be able to adequately and competently care for Black people as well.”
Read more: bit.ly/3Sxn36R
On March 19 we hosted Own Your Stress, a special event on how stress is impacting Black women and what we can do about it. An immense thank you goes to our panelists, Dr. Jessica Peterson, UChicago Medicine; Dr. Lisa Moore, Crown Family School of Social Work, Policy, and Practice; and Dr. Camille Williamson, American Medical Association Equity Center.
It was an amazing conversation that was a combination of informative, direct, and funny. Here are a few takeaways:
- Black women of all ages are experiencing high levels of stress, but what that stress feels like is different from generation to generation.
- Stress is killing Black women. Point blank, period.
- Reducing stress for Black women requires both individuals and whole communities to be involved.
- We need more spaces for Black women to talk openly and honestly about their stress.
- Admitting you feel stressed is hard, even for doctors.
- Self care requires making commitments you can manage.
If you missed it, but wanted to listen in you can download a recording of the conversation here: https://buff.ly/3xlRrJp
🌟 Celebrating Black History Month in Public Health 🌍✨
As we honor #BlackHistoryMonth, it's crucial to recognize its profound impact on Public Health. This month isn't just a reflection of history—it's a reminder of the resilience, contributions, and challenges faced by the Black community in the realm of health.
In Public Health, acknowledging Black History Month means understanding health disparities rooted in systemic inequalities. It's about addressing the gaps in access, combating social determinants, and championing health equity. It's not just a chapter in history; it's a call to action for the future.
As a young Black leader in Public Health, this month holds profound significance for me. It amplifies our responsibility to dismantle barriers, advocate for inclusivity, and bridge gaps in healthcare. It's a testament to the strength of our community and a commitment to shaping a healthier, more equitable future.
Let's use this month as a catalyst for meaningful change. Together, we can build a Public Health landscape that reflects the diversity, resilience, and brilliance of every individual. ✊🏿 ✊🏾 ✊🏽 ✊🏼 ✊🏻 #BlackHistoryInPublicHealth#HealthEquity#LeadershipMatters#DELPHscholar
Black History Month is an opportunity to focus on the rich contributions of the Black community to lung health – from people with lived experience who inspire us with their stories, to tireless caregivers, to intrepid researchers, to compassionate healthcare professionals, and everyone in between.
It’s especially important to acknowledge the Black community’s contributions to lung health in a world where gaps in the prevention, diagnosis and care of lung disease routinely result in poorer outcomes for racialized communities. Throughout history, the Black community has had to fight hard against racial bias and systemic inequities just for a seat at the table.
This Black History Month, we urge you to stand with organizations that are committed to widening the table.
More than ever, we the Lung Health Foundation is dedicated to:
• Recognizing that unlearning anti-Black racism is a process that involves meaningful evaluation of both personal bias and systemic inequities;
• Working to create a staff team that is as diverse as the country we call home; and
• Seeking out the unique experiences of racialized groups to help shape our policy and advocacy work.
#BlackHistoryMonth#LungHealthForAll#HealthEquity
Physician leader | Health strategist | Dot-connector advancing health equity through innovations in population health, health promotion, and disease prevention
At Episcopal Health Foundation (EHF), we're dedicated to promoting equity by improving #HealthNotJustHealthCare. That effort requires all of us to shift the health system to benefit all Texans.
EHF’s new strategic framework targets three priority areas: food/nutrition security, maternal health, and diabetes prevention. Why? Because we believe that addressing these critical conditions and issues will lead to a ripple effect of good health for all communities.
As we step into the beginning of Black History Month, it's crucial to reflect on how the intersection of racial history and health equity affects Black communities. Take a look at diabetes where there are stark disparities in health outcomes: Black adults are 60% more likely to be diagnosed than White adults. These health inequities stem from non-medical drivers of health - factors outside the doctor’s office that impact a person’s overall health and well-being such as limited access to affordable nutritious food, lack of sidewalks or safe environments for exercise, chronic stress, and more. In many neighborhoods across Texas, these negative non-medical factors disproportionately affect under-resourced Black families.
In Texas, the maternal health crisis is also particularly alarming. The state's maternal mortality rate is consistently high or above the national average and disproportionately affects Black women, irrespective of their socioeconomic status. This is another reminder of the deep-rooted impact of structural racism on health outcomes in Texas and beyond.
Our approach at EHF focuses on nurturing community-led initiatives to tackle these health challenges. As we honor Black History Month, and reflect on the strides made since the Civil Rights Movement, we also should reaffirm our commitment to health equity and celebrate the resilience and spirit of the communities we serve.
#blackhistorymonth#healthequity#healthnotjusthealthcare
The story of Black healthcare professionals is not just about their challenges; it's about the impact they can have on communities.
In my career, I’ve seen firsthand how representation can transform the healthcare experience. When patients see themselves reflected in their providers, trust grows, and so does effective communication. This connection is crucial in addressing the health disparities that persist due to systemic biases.
We need to change the narrative and uplift Black voices in healthcare. Together, we can foster an environment where diverse healthcare professionals thrive and help bridge the gaps in care for marginalized communities.
What steps do you think we can take to promote greater representation in our industry?
Let's engage and make a difference!
#Healthcare#Diversity#Representation#HealthEquity#BlackProfessionals
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