National Medical AssociationNational Medical Association

Authored by Rodney G. Hood, M.D.Immediate Past President

Racism in MedicineHealth Parity for African Americans

Carnage of RacismCarnage of Racism

The Beginning The Beginning

The Evolution of Man

Palaeonto-logical Evolution Evidence

Palaeonto-logical Evolution Evidence

Lucy

Origin of All LanguagesOrigin of All Languages

Africa

Genetic Evolution EvidenceGenetic Evolution Evidence

In 1987 geneticists at UC Berkeley (Cann/Wilson) analyzed partial mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence (less than 7%) of different people worldwide and found more genetic mutations among indigenous Africans than any other people.

Max Ingman, et. al., at the University of Uppsala in Sweden recently described global mtDNA diversity in humans based on analyses of the complete mtDNA sequence of 53 humans of diverse origins.

Nature: Mitochondrial Genome Variation and the Origin of Modern Man, Dec. 7, 2000.

The Migration of Man The Migration of Man

The origin and dispersal of modern humans, Homo sapiens. The time of origin of modern humans is not well known but may have been about 200,000 (130,000–465,000) years ago.

“The African Eve”“The African Eve”

The UC Berkeley geneticists postulated that the entire population of the modern world was descended from a relatively small group of people that left Africa 100,000 years ago.

This group postulated the “African Eve” theory (Newsweek), that every human being alive today carries the mtDNA of just one African woman (Lucy’s cousin) or a small number of female African ancestors who lived more than 10,000 generations ago.

Imhotep the Physician Imhotep the Physician

This great African physician was deified in approximately 2850 B.C.

Imhotep was the first person known as a doctor throughout the world and acknowledged as the god of medicine 5000 years ago.

Some 2500 years before a Greek laid claim to this same title.

Historic African Surgery Historic African Surgery

Cesarean Section performed by a Banyoro surgeon in Uganda in 1879 with the use of aseptic technique, sutures and hot cautery irons.

Illustration from Dr. RW Felkin’s description of the Cesarean Section.

Edinburgh Medical Journal, 1884

Human Genome ProjectHuman Genome Project

A Portrait in Diversity A Portrait in Diversity

Human World ClansThe Seven Daughters of Eve “Whose Your Mama?”

Human World ClansThe Seven Daughters of Eve “Whose Your Mama?”

G aia

M akeda M alaxshm i

Xenia

Ina

HelenaNeanderthals & Hom o erectus

M itochondrial Eve

Ve lda

Jasm ine

Tara

Naom i

U lrike

U rsu la

U lla

K atrine

W est EurasiaAnd Am erica

Africa andW est Eurasia

Nuo

Una

U ta

Layla

Latifa

L ila

Lungile

Lubaya Latasha

La lam ika

Lam ia

E lia

D jigonasee

Chochm ingwu A iyana

U m a

LARA

L ingaire

L im ber

A frica East Eurasiaand A m erica

East Eurasia Centra l andW est Eurasia

Lucy

“LAYLA” Rodney’s Mama

“LAYLA” Rodney’s Mama

Conclusion of Evidence Conclusion of Evidence

Thus, we have Fossil, Linguistic and Genetic evidence that persuasively point to the conclusion that every person alive today is descended from modern humans (Homo Sapiens) that existed only in Africa until approximately 100,000 years ago.

The origins of humanity, civilization, intelligence and modern medicine (Imhotep) have evolved from Africa.

Racism has roots in medicine over 2500 years

The Evolution of Racism in Medicine

Race and Ancient Scientific Precursors

Race and Ancient Scientific Precursors

The Great Chain of Being

Early Forefathers of Racial Bias Early Forefathers of Racial Bias

The Roman-Greek Contributions to Racism

in Medicine

The Roman-Greek Contributions to Racism

in Medicine

The teachings of Galen (c. 130-201), a famous second century Roman physician of Greek origin, were accepted as sacrosanct by teachers of Western medicine for 1500 years.

Galen promoted the racist concepts of Black physical and psychological inferiority in his teachings and writings.

Bernal M.Black Athena/ The Fabrication of Ancient Greece 1785-1985, Rutger Univ. Press, 1987.

European Contribution: Racism in MedicineEuropean Contribution: Racism in Medicine

Many European physician-scientists during the 16th, 17th, 18th and 19th centuries contributed racist teachings into the medical corpus of knowledge.

A few notables:Paracelsus: A famous Swiss physician and

philosopher.Anton van Leeuwenhoek: Father of Microscopy.Marcello Malphighi: Father of Histology

Hottentot Venus LadyHottentot Venus Lady

Exploitation of Saartjie Baartman by Baron Georges Cuvier

The Round Up Period The Round Up Period

The Slave ShipThe Slave Ship

Living Africans Thrown Overboard The Slave Ship Zong in 1781

Living Africans Thrown Overboard The Slave Ship Zong in 1781

Transatlantic Slave PeriodTransatlantic Slave Period

The Assault on Black Humanity ContinuesThe Assault on Black Humanity Continues

American Health Professional Contribution to Racism in Medicine

American Health Professional Contribution to Racism in Medicine

Benjamin Rush, M.D. Benjamin Rush, M.D.

The Beginning of Women’s HealthThe Beginning of Women’s Health

Father of Gynecology – J. Marion Sims, M.D.

Medically Prescribed PunishmentMedically Prescribed Punishment

First Black Health Reconstruction PeriodFirst Black Health Reconstruction Period

Organized Medicine’s Race-Based Policies

Organized Medicine’s Race-Based Policies

Three periods of AMA official rejection of Black physicians:

1. June 1869 — the Medical Society of the District of Columbia.

2. May 1870 — at the 21st AMA National Convention in Washington, D.D.

3. In 1872 — the AMA Convention again rejected a similar biracial delegation.

Nineteenth-Century Academic Thinking on Race Nineteenth-Century Academic Thinking on Race

Nathaniel Southgate Shaler (1841-1906)

Joseph LeConte (1823-1901)

Edward Drinker Cope (1840-1897)

National Medical Association Birth

National Medical Association Birth

The Civil Rights Era The Second Black Health Reconstruction Period

The Civil Rights Era The Second Black Health Reconstruction Period

The 1964 Civil Rights Act, hospital desegregation court rulings, passage of Medicare and Medicaid and the health centers movement, all created a “Civil Rights Era” in health care for Blacks.

This initiated the Second Black Health Reconstruction Period from 1965 - 1985.

“The Slave Health Deficit” A National Crisis“The Slave Health Deficit” A National Crisis

35% more Blacks than the general population die from cancer each year.

40% more Blacks than the general population die from heart disease each year.

35% of Black men suffer with hypertension compared to the national average of 25%.

Diabetes Mellitus is 70% higher among Blacks.

Blacks suffer much higher rates of ESRD but Whites are twice as likely to receive a life saving kidney transplant.

The impact of HIV/AIDS, violence, substance abuse, unintentional injuries, infant mortality & many other preventable conditions is greater for Blacks.

Causes for the Ethnic Health Disparities Causes for the Ethnic Health Disparities

Inadequate Access

Socioeconomic

Cultural Differences

Genetic Differences

Environmental Exposures

Dietary HabitsUnhealthy Life Styles

Culturally Incompetent Health Care Systems & Providers

Racial BiasRacial Bias

RacismRacism

Modern Racism in Health Care

An Unspoken “Risk Factor” for the African American Health Deficit and Ethnic Health Disparities in the United States

“Of All Forms of Inequity, Injustice in Healthcare is the Most Shocking and Inhumane.”

- Martin Luther King

The Evidence forModern Racism in Medicine

“Health Care Racial Profiling”

Racial Bias in Medicine “Health Care Racial Profiling” Racial Bias in Medicine “Health Care Racial Profiling”

JAMA, 1994: A study in Los Angeles revealed : “Hispanic patients were twice as likely as white patients to receive no analgesia when presenting to the ER with a fresh bone fractures.”

The Annals of Emergency Medicine, Jan. 2000 (Emory University School of Medicine) concluded that “Black patients with broken arms and legs were less likely than white patients to receive painkillers when presenting to an Atlanta ER.”

Racial Bias in Medicine “Health Care Racial Profiling” Racial Bias in Medicine “Health Care Racial Profiling”

“Race, quality of care and prescribing practices in psychiatric emergency services”, Psychiatry Service: March, 1996.

Conclusion – “Clinicians, mostly Caucasian, prescribed more psychiatric medications to African Americans than to other patients and devoted significantly less time to their psychiatric evaluations.”

“Health Care Racial Profiling”“Health Care Racial Profiling”

The Schulman// Georgetown Cardiovascular Study (NEJM:Feb. 1999).

The Lung Cancer Sloan-Kettering Study (NEJM:Oct.1999).

The Renal Transplant Harvard Study (NEJM: Nov. 1999).

Health Care Racial Profiling Health Care Racial Profiling

Brigham & Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School Study, “Quality of Care by Race & Gender for CHF and Pneumonia”, by Ayanian, et al (Medical Care Dec. 1999, 37(12):1260-9)

The Michelle van Ryn Study, “Effects of Race and SES on Physicians Perception of Patients” (J. Social Science and Medicine: March 2000)

Yale University Cooperative Cardiovascular Project, “Racial Differences in the Use of Cardiac Catherization after Acute Myocardial Infarction”, by J. Chen, et al (NEJM, May 2001, Vol.344)

Defining Racism Defining Racism

Camara Phyllis Jones gives a theoretical framework for understanding and defining racism.

Internalized Racism

Personally Mediated Racism

Institutionalized Racism

Health Policy and Research Institute Health Policy and Research Institute

Health Institute Centers

African American Health Center Think Tank

Health Policy and Advocacy Center

Research, Surveillance and Educational Center

Community/Public Media Information Center

Mobilization and Participation Action Center

Understanding Racism through Jazz Understanding Racism through Jazz

A Question to Explore A Question to Explore

Is there a correlation between the centuries-old racist theories taught by the western medical profession and the current studies that reveal persistent race-associated differential health status and outcomes based upon the degree of melanin in the population?

Health Disparities the Vision for the FutureHealth Disparities the Vision for the Future

The Hope and The Future The Hope and The Future

We will, We can, and We must stop the insanity of racism!

“Insanity is when we keep doing the same thing and expecting a different result.”

by Albert Einstein presented by Ariannah Hood