The Flaw of Medicine: Addressing Racial and Gender Disparities in Critical Care

Ebony J Hilton; Kristina L Goff; Roshni Sreedharan; Nadia Lunardi; Mariam Batakji; Dorothea S Rosenberger

doi:10.1016/j.anclin.2020.01.011

The Flaw of Medicine: Addressing Racial and Gender Disparities in Critical Care

Anesthesiol Clin. 2020 Jun;38(2):357-368. doi: 10.1016/j.anclin.2020.01.011. Epub 2020 Apr 1.

Authors

Ebony J Hilton¹, Kristina L Goff², Roshni Sreedharan³, Nadia Lunardi⁴, Mariam Batakji⁴, Dorothea S Rosenberger⁵

Affiliations

¹ University of Virginia Health System, PO Box 800710, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA. Electronic address: eh3nf@hscmail.mcc.virginia.edu.
² University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 3851 Beutel Court, Dallas, TX 75229, USA.
³ Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, 9500 Euclid Avenue, Mail Code G-58, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA.
⁴ University of Virginia Health System, PO Box 800710, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA.
⁵ University of Utah School of Medicine, 30 North 1900 East, Room 3C444 SOM, Salt Lake City, UT 84132, USA.

PMID: 32336389
DOI: 10.1016/j.anclin.2020.01.011

Abstract

The age of modern medicine has ushered in remarkable advances and with them increased longevity of life. The questions are, however: Has everyone benefited from these developments equally? and Do all lives truly matter? The presence of gender and racial health disparities indicates that there is work still left to be done. The first target of intervention may well be the medical establishment itself. The literature presented in this article identifies potential targets for interventions and future areas of exploration.

Keywords: Critical care; Gender; Health disparities; Minority physicians; Race.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Critical Care*
Female
Healthcare Disparities / ethnology*
Humans
Intensive Care Units
Male
Physician's Role
Precision Medicine
Sex Characteristics