By Michelle Andrews
Physicians believe the June 29 Supreme Court ruling will have far-reaching implications not only for the diversity of doctors and other health care workers in training, but ultimately for patient care. I am afraid that
The ruling found it unconstitutional for universities to use race as a factor in student admissions, which will affect admissions decisions at public and private institutions, including medical schools.
Medical schools, like other academic institutions, have long considered race in admissions decisions. These schools operate on the principle that a more diverse physician workforce does a better job of treating diverse patients, and there is considerable evidence that this is true.
“This decision demonstrates a lack of understanding of the significant benefits of racial and ethnic diversity in the educational setting and a failure to recognize the urgent need to address health inequalities,” the US said. Medical Association President and CEO David Skowton said in a statement. The University and its Chief Legal Officer Frank Trinity.
Chief Justice John Roberts wrote: majority opinion. It held that the admissions programs at the defendants’ Harvard University and the University of North Carolina violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, which prohibits racial discrimination. The decision overturned decades of legal precedent that allowed universities to evaluate applicants by race, in addition to factors such as academic performance and test scores.
In a dissenting opinion, Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, on behalf of the three liberal justices of the Court, said the ruling was “a constitutional imperative in an endemic segregated society where race has always mattered and will continue to matter.” The principle of color blindness cements superficial rules about color blindness.”
What does this ruling mean for medical schools?
Medical educators say the decision could have significant repercussions.
AAMC, Representing More Than 500 Medical Schools And Teaching Hospitals, Has Filed A Court Brief With The Court advocate for diversity Medical education “literally saves lives” by enabling doctors, nurses and other health professionals to properly care for an increasingly diverse population.
“Provider diversity contributes to increased confidence among students, trainees and physicians when working with patient populations that differ from their own identities,” said Norma, Senior Director of Workforce Diversity at AAMC. Paul Hunter said
It’s impossible to fully predict the impact of the court’s ruling, but looking at some of the nine states that already ban race-conscious college admissions: may give you a clue.Ann Analysis of Prohibitions Six states found that medical school enrollments among students of color, who are members of underrepresented groups, dropped by about 17 percent after the bans were introduced.
What about patients?
I can’t say anything at this point.
Despite the United States having the most advanced medical research and clinical care system in the world, blacks and other minorities are often worse off than whites. across a range of health measures. Their life expectancy is even lower in 2021, at 65.2 years for American Indians and Alaska Natives and 70.8 years for blacks, compared to 76.4 years for whites, according to the KFF. Black and AIAN infants were nearly twice as likely to die compared to white infants, and women from these minority groups had the highest pregnancy-related mortality rates in 2021.
According to Paul Hunter, research shows that people of all races tend to prefer seeing doctors similar to themselves in race and ethnicity. Patients who are of the same ethnicity as their provider report higher levels of satisfaction, trust, and better communication.
Studies show that patients may be healthier if they are the same race or gender as their healthcare provider.
For example, a study of 1.8 million infants born in Florida hospitals between 1992 and 2015 found that black newborns half the chance of dying When a black doctor treats, it’s the same as when a white doctor treats. Studies have historically focused on white newborns with white doctors, said Brad Greenwood, a professor of information systems and operations management at George Mason University and lead author of the study.
“To the extent that physicians in social outgroups are likely to be aware of the challenges and problems that arise in treating their group, it is likely that these physicians are competent to treat patients with complex needs. It is certainly possible,” the report said. study.
But the solution, Greenwood said, is not to have access to black doctors for all black patients.
“Jim Crowing’s medicine will not solve this problem,” he said, referring to laws enforcing racial segregation enacted in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Ensuring a diverse physician base can improve care for all patients, including those from marginalized groups. “Increasing diversity increases the range of how people think and express best practices through diversity of opinion,” he said.
No harm?
Do No Harm, a group of medical and policy experts who oppose race-sensitive medical school admissions and other policies that incorporate identity-based considerations into health care decision-making, argued that race-sensitive admissions are not diversity. claim to be discriminatory.
“Our view is that everyone in health care should be the most qualified,” he said. stanley goldfarb, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Do No Harm. “Gender or race doesn’t matter. All that matters is that they are good, ethical people and are good at what they do.”
Goldfarb cited a study that showed that:doesn’t matter“between racial or ethnic identity and the quality of communication,” and “inconclusive” Evidence on Patient Outcomes.
The first medical school class to be affected will be the 2028 graduates. Some experts have suggested that universities and medical schools could adopt policies such as: income or family wealth Consider this when deciding who to accept. After the state of California banned race-sensitive admissions in 1996, the UC Davis medical school changed its process to focus less on MCAT scores and grades and more on socioeconomic measures. According to statistics news.
AAMC’s Paul Hunter isn’t convinced. “There is no substitute or surrogate for race,” she said. “The reality is that the United States has a history of exclusion, forced migration, and colonization, and we cannot ignore the realities of race.”
