Harvard Study Finds American Perception Of Racism Does Not Match Findings About Minority Experiences In Health Care

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The US healthcare system has a problem with racism according to Harvard researchers, despite results showing that 53% of people polled in the US don’t think racism is a very big problem in the country today.

America’s healthcare system has a problem with racism, Harvard researchers say, despite results showing that 53% of people in the United States don’t think racism is a very big problem in the country today .

“Racism in healthcare is unfortunately quite common among black and Latino patients,” said Mary Findling of the Harvard Opinion Research Program.

More than a third of black and Latino adults in the United States reported that they or members of their household who received care in the past year experienced one or more forms of racial discrimination when were taken care of, Findling said.

During a panel hosted by The Forum, Findling referred to a national survey conducted in November and December 2020 and released in 2021 by the Commonwealth Fund and the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. The results were published this spring in the JAMA Health Forum.

Other highlights among the findings:

About 1 in 5 black and Latino households report that in the past year, they have not received the best treatment available; About 1 in 8 people report being denied timely access to health services; About 1 in 8 people say they were not referred to specialists when they felt they needed a referral because they were black or Latin American.

Findling said the problem is pervasive and is experienced throughout the health care delivery system, from emergency departments to neighborhood health clinics.

One in 10 and one in 12 [respectively] Black and Latino patients reported discrimination against different types of these providers, which really underscores for us just how prevalent this problem is in the delivery of health care; Discrimination affects all types of institutions, types of providers and types of interaction with the health system, Findling said.

She is among those who believe the problem needs to be resolved.

“If you work in any kind of service industry, you work for an airline, if you work in retail or if you work in the healthcare industry, and a third of your customers tell you that ‘he’s been subjected to racist behavior from you, just in the last year or so, that should give you pause, “Findling warned.

You can see the entire discussion on the forums website.

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