Have you ever been to the doctor and have them tell you that the pain or discomfort you are feeling isn’t real or isn’t serious? Do you worry that, in an emergency, unconscious bias could delay or deny you life-saving care? If you are a person of color this is an all too common experience. Today we are learning how a history of racism in American medicine combined with unconscious bias from health care professionals is impacting the quality of care that people of color receive today.

A study published by the National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities and Columbia University found that “Black patients with problems comparable to whites got less attention from nurses, fewer tests and less sophisticated or no heart treatments.” A case in point is tennis legend Serena Williams’ concerns about blood clots being dismissed.

Research by the Univ. of Albany School of Public Health showed that white physicians perceived Black patients and low-income patients less intelligent than white patients and those with higher income. The Journal of Ethnic and Racial Studies indicated that when doctors and nurses were asked anonymously to explain racial inequalities in healthcare, most providers saw Black patients as “passive” and “unintelligent,” and blamed them for not making pointed care requests of their providers.

Black people continue to suffer disproportionate health disparities in Westchester as they do elsewhere. In 2017, hospitalizations for strokes were more than twice as high for Black people as for white people. Most recently, data gathered on COVID-19 vaccine distribution in the county showed that 90% of the recipients were white, despite the fact that people of color were diagnosed with and dying from the virus at rates twice as high. Racism appears to be as deadly as the pandemic.