Key Themes From Our Survey
Health literature pays plenty of lip service to racial disparities.
But those articles focus on outcomes.
Of course, systemic racism in the healthcare system is already well-documented.
Nusha Ashjaee / Verywell
Verywells Black Health Experience survey gets to the bottom of how, when, and why those outcomes occur.
Our survey asked respondents about their perceived experiences with racism in the healthcare system.
We did not define what constitutes a racist experience.
But their experience of the healthcare system is not the same.
But seeking similar treatment does not automatically equate to receiving treatment that responds to your needs.
Mistrust of the healthcare system exists among Black Americans partly because of awareness of racism in medicine.
Mistrust is amplified by lack of representation.
I want someone who understands the foods that I eat.
I want someone who understands my upbringing and things that my grandma used to tell me.
When Are Racist Experiences Happening?
Patients Report Racism at the Point of Care
Interpersonal racismoccurs between two or more individuals.
Black Americans often have to choose between enduring racism versus interrupting or stopping treatment completely.
This requires systemic solutions.
This could be a contributing factor to disparities in health outcomes.
Our survey participants report responding to racism in healthcare in the following ways:
Interrupting care has consequences.
Avoiding follow up appointments or delaying health decisions can lead to poor outcomes that are so often cited.
Patients history of perceived racism leading to medical mistrust was the biggest contributing factor to delayed care.
Hope for a solution to inequality within the healthcare system is alive among Black Americans.
Today, though, the Black health experience remains a challenge.
Methodology
Verywell conducted a survey among over 2,000 Black and White Americans 18+ from 1/19/2022 to 1/24/2022.
The survey was fielded online via self-administered questionnaire to an opt-in panel of respondents from a market research vendor.
Detailed sample sizes: N=1,010 Black Americans, N=1,006 White Americans
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Racism and health.
University of Michigan School of Public Health.Understanding Black distrust of medicine.
Pew Research Center.On views of race and inequality, Blacks and Whites are worlds apart.
2019;45(2):102-117. doi:10.1080/08964289.2019.1585327
