Everyone should have access to healthcare tailored to their needs. Tragically, this is often not the case for minorities. The healthcare industry does not reflect the diverse population it serves, which leads to treatment bias that may be life-altering or life-threatening for the patient.
This widespread unconscious bias in healthcare impacts the industry itself. African Americans and other minorities do not receive the same opportunities to enter the field of medicine, leaving the practice lacking in diversity. Eliminating this unconscious bias in healthcare begins at the top. By promoting awareness and encouraging diversity, leaders can effect widespread transformation. This work is best supported by a DEI consultant who can work with you and guide the journey.
This partnership will combat racial bias in healthcare and create a more equitable industry.
When Unconscious Bias Manifests in Medical Education
Before exploring strategies to reduce bias in the healthcare industry, it is essential to recognize its impact. From patients to providers, implicit bias in medicine affects the industry in many ways. Even a seemingly inconsequential moment of treatment bias that doesn’t immediately impact a patient’s health can create a far-reaching ripple effect, ultimately leading to devastating outcomes in the future.
Implicit Bias in Medicine Creates Underrepresentation
The implicit bias in medicine prevalent in the healthcare industry hampers diversity and exacerbates minorities’ abilities to access quality care that serves their unique needs. Studies demonstrate that having a doctor of the same race or ethnicity encourages discussing important health issues and decisions by breaking down racial barriers that may otherwise exist.
This is especially concerning when, as data from the Association of American Medical Colleges shows, only about 5.7% of physicians in the United States identify as Black or African American, even though Black individuals make up approximately 13.6% of the overall population. Failing to address this unconscious bias in healthcare will yield detrimental effects.
Effective intervention to reduce racial bias in healthcare could increase diversity in incoming medical student classes, subsequently creating a workforce reflective of the diverse patient population it serves. Strategies to reduce bias are effective, as evidenced by the increase in female, black, and Hispanic matriculants in U.S. medical schools after implementing LCME diversity accreditation standards (2012–2017). However, there is still much more progress to be made.
The Impact of Provider Bias on Patient Care
Every patient, regardless of race, deserves a provider who understands their unique physical, mental and emotional needs. The most common type of bias in healthcare are providers who do not have empathetic, inclusive or understanding interactions with minorities. This happens when doctors do not look like or have experiences similar to their patients. To serve a diverse patient population effectively, the unequal treatment and suboptimal patient care arising from implicit bias in healthcare must be addressed.
The higher the level of implicit bias, the more likely the provider is to exhibit behavior that is not patient-centered, leading to shorter interactions and reduced quality of care for minority patients.
Racial Bias Exhibited in Pain Assessment and Treatment
Another type of bias in healthcare that directly affects the health of minority patients is when providers allow racial bias to play a role in their pain assessment and treatment decisions. These unconscious biases may result in incorrect assumptions about patients’ conditions, level of pain tolerance and ability to adhere to medical advice. When left unchecked, a healthcare professional’s deep-rooted beliefs and perspectives can negatively influence the quality and appropriateness of medical care for minority patients.
The Complexities of Addressing Implicit Bias in Healthcare
Untangling the roots of implicit bias in healthcare is complex and challenging. These roots run deep and are difficult to unearth. Even when discovered, it is only the first obstacle to overcome before change can occur.
Each provider’s unconscious bias may manifest uniquely, meaning there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Recognizing racial bias in healthcare requires a deep understanding of the issues and developing a comprehensive strategy to address them.
1. Triggering Cognitive Dissonance
One of the difficulties in identifying and addressing unconscious bias in any industry or situation is the cognitive dissonance it triggers. Healthcare professionals enter the field to help others, so unconscious bias can create an internal conflict between their sincere intentions and their unintentional harboring of biased attitudes. A provider’s genuine aspiration to offer impartial treatment does not peacefully coexist with unconscious bias, leaving them feeling out of sorts and their patient feeling neglected.
2. Perpetuating Inaccurate Pain Perception
When one doesn’t understand the experiences of another race, it is virtually impossible to recognize their pain. Unconscious bias perpetuates this issue by offering false narratives or beliefs, particularly related to the vast differences between racial groups in the healthcare industry. The distortion this causes can significantly impact medical professionals’ perception of pain levels or treatment needs, resulting in inadequate care.
3. Conquering Resistance and Skepticism
Many healthcare professionals do not acknowledge or recognize that unconscious bias exists in the industry or within themselves. Thus, they may perceive dialogue about the topic as unnecessary or, even worse, accusatory. A leader’s willingness and ability to disrupt skepticism and resistance can contribute significantly to promoting awareness about implicit bias in healthcare and creating strategic solutions to address it.
4. Fostering Dialogue about Treatment Bias
Leaders must nurture an environment that encourages and expects healthcare professionals to engage in open dialogue about treatment bias. By genuinely discussing concerns, questions and reflections, leaders can empower healthcare teams to acknowledge their biases, learn from their peers’ experiences and work collaboratively toward building a more equitable and inclusive healthcare industry.
How to Combat Unconscious Bias in Medical Education
Medical students are primed to soak up all the knowledge offered as they embark on their journey into the healthcare industry. Incorporating discussions about unconscious bias into medical education will lessen its future impact on healthcare professionals and patients. Offering insightful knowledge based on practical experience early and often allows healthcare leaders to course correct before any significant damage occurs.
Technology as a Solution
Leveraging technology to tackle unconscious bias is an innovative way leaders can create growth for providers and meet the diverse needs of patients. The Implicit Association Test (IAT), a user-friendly online resource designed to gauge unconscious or implicit bias, has gained traction within medical settings recently, and for good reason.
Curriculum-integrated interactive modules allow introspection and self-assessment, cultivating heightened awareness of one’s unconscious biases and their potential repercussions on patient care. This unique tool also offers virtual reality simulations where medical students participate in patient scenarios. This empowers them to navigate potential biases in a controlled environment while gaining invaluable exposure to diverse backgrounds and experiences.
Building Systemic Change
Medical education can be restructured to inspire a journey of self-reflection among students and professionals. Offering dedicated sessions for introspection empowers individuals to identify personal biases and consider their implications. Medical students should always be encouraged to discuss and debate unconscious bias. This will aid in challenging preconceived notions, confronting biases and developing strategies for equitable patient interactions.
Importance of Diversity in Medical Student Populations
Medical students who will become the future of healthcare must reflect the reality of patient demographics. Additionally, faculty should represent diverse backgrounds and cultures to serve as real world role models and mentors who are able to impart the importance of culturally-competent care and reduce bias.
Integration of Continuous Bias Education
Unconscious bias discussions must extend beyond a singular session. Medical students should learn early and often the importance of evaluating their attitudes and behaviors around racial bias. A DEI consultant can help develop continuous education events and provide other strategies to reduce bias.
Collaboration Boosts Impact
By forming dedicated networks that address bias, medical schools and institutions can conquer unconscious bias, driving widespread change in medical education and practice. Authentically discussing and sharing best practices, curricula, and experiences creates a broader, collective impact that can forever alter the future of healthcare.
Ethical Considerations Arising out of Unconscious Bias Conversations
Before implementing strategies to reduce it, it is essential to understand two crucial ethical considerations related to unconscious bias. Unconscious bias is a sensitive topic that should always be approached thoughtfully and empathetically, armed with practical and insightful knowledge. By understanding where hazards exist and avoiding them, leaders can ensure the journey toward creating a more inclusive healthcare industry is seamless.
Ethical Concerns of DEI Efforts
While well-intentioned, efforts from leaders and DEI speakers may place an undue burden on individuals from marginalized backgrounds who are already disadvantaged. The practice of expecting these individuals to share their lived experiences and educate others on problematic biases can perpetuate inequality. Asking those already impacted by racial bias to play a significant role in reducing it may not only counteract its effectiveness but also harm its ability to create meaningful change.
Medical Associations’ Role in Promoting Awareness and Addressing Bias
Regional and national medical associations are invaluable resources to ensure any ethical concerns are addressed before implementing strategies to reduce bias. Leading the way, the American Medical Association (AMA) has made great strides in addressing bias-related challenges and disparities in healthcare. Additionally, their active stance has been vital in thoughtfully integrating bias discussions into medical education and practice. By partnering with medical associations, leaders can successfully navigate the challenges of discussing unconscious bias.
Leading the Industry toward Unbiased Healthcare
Healthcare leaders have the weighty responsibility, but also an incredible opportunity, to create an industry that is diverse and inclusive. An individual’s well-being is the cornerstone of their ability to live the life they want and deserve, so it is essential that everyone has access to healthcare that meets their unique needs and health goals and considers their experiences and backgrounds.
Beginning early at the educational level, evaluating progress often and engaging the support of a DEI consultant is critical to optimizing these strategies to reduce bias and ensure the process is helpful, not harmful. The significant work of a DEI speaker will ultimately create a healthcare industry free of unconscious bias that meets the diverse needs of every patient, regardless of race.
