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accessHealthNews.net
December 2021
Volume 8 | Issue No. 52
This article was originally published in August 2021.
I
n a recent installment of a webinar series
titled "Racial Equity and Mental Health,"
panelists examined the importance of
providers contextualizing medical racism when
helping patients of color. "The Big Picture:
The History of Mental Health and Race"
explored the history of race and epidemics in
the U.S. and a timeline of global health care
advancements. Together they painted a
broader picture: There is a well-documented
history of providers aligning themselves with
the oppressive side of systemic racism. Racial
equity in health care is not achievable without
first acknowledging this history and actively
working to provide a safe, comfortable, and
trusting experience for patients of color.
RACE AND EPIDEMICS IN THE U.S.
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and
national vaccination efforts, examples of
racism in medical history were brought to
light as reasons for caution. Black Americans
hesitant to receive a vaccine pointed to the
Tuskegee experiments as one example of
many to be wary of trusting providers. While the
intention to achieve herd immunity is positive,
some vaccine campaigns may have alienated
Black people by failing to recognize or validate
their concerns. Lacking the historical context of
racism in health care both weakens patients'
trust in medical professionals and allows for
more risk of malpractice.
According to panelist Dr. Kirby Randolph,
Ph.D., observing and tracking what happened
to slaves and newly freed Black Americans
throughout health epidemics was not a priority.
Because of this, the medical research we
have on these health crises lacks countless
experiences. Dr. Randolph pointed to the 1792
Yellow Fever epidemic in Philadelphia where
Black people were believed to be immune and
were therefore excluded from treatment and
data collection. Similar mishandling of Black
experiences occurred throughout the smallpox
and HIV epidemics.
Slavery created the furthest-reaching loss of
Black lives. Possessing the want for freedom,
considered a mental illness in slaves at the
time, was one of many reasons a slave
could be killed or sold. "If you had serious
mental illness – depression, delusions, mania,
hallucinations – and you were property of
someone else, that person could dispose of
you in any way they see fit," said Dr. Randolph.
"If Black lives did not matter until last year, you can trust that your
staff and patients remember that. This is 400 years of disparate health
outcomes and it's not going to be fixed immediately, but having these
acknowledgments is a good first step."
