Examples Of Social Determinants Of Health

Social Determinants of Health:
In “The Black Man in a White Coat” by Damon Tweedy, the medical student and then practicing physician details his personal experiences concerning race and medicine. From the beginning of the novel, I noticed the similarities between Tweedy’s lectures to those of our own in PA school. Each lecture begins or ends with the common topic of distribution regarding age, sex, and race. The only commonality being “More common among black people” (Tweedy pg. 12). However, it wasn’t until reading this book that staggering disparity in disease could be more related to social determinants of health rather than genetic differences between races. Throughout the pages of the book, Tweedy outlines the factors that put black people

In the last century, racial equality has significantly improved in the United States. Unfortunately, our country still has a long was to come regarding deep rooted racial biases. Biases, both conscious and unconscious, contribute to how healthcare providers treat patients. I hope to believe that many of the biases that do cross of our minds, do not carry any malice, but regardless still impact care. Through other courses, I have learned the numerous types of biases, such as anchoring or premature closure, but failed to have the conversations of racial bias directly. However, as we learned how to overcome these biases that affect the way we practice, the same method holds true with racial biases. Awareness that all people have biases is the first way to recognize them. Tweedy shares a great example of how these biases present, and the outcome they can have, especially in the medical world, “Missing a blood clot in the patients’ painful leg because the doctor thinks that black people in a given clinic or hospital are likely to be drug addicts seeking their next fix is far more dangerous kind of insult than a salesperson assuming that a black customer cannot afford a Brook brother suit… These stakes make it vitally important for doctors to understand their capacity for prejudice (Tweedy pg 152). Being

What I mean by this was well described by Tweedy, “As doctors, there is ultimately only so much that we can do for our patients, especially for the more disadvantaged in our society… But as doctors, we can do one simple thing for them: We can make our very best effort to treat everyone fairly” (Tweedy pg 152). As a future PA, I won’t be able to help all of my patients get jobs, pay their bills, ensure they are eating healthy and exercising, or even come in for help when they are ill. But what I can do, as Tweedy says, is ensure that when they do seek my help and care, that I give them excellent care. In order to do this, I hope to continue to educate myself on racial biases and disparities. By seeking ways to grow in this manner, I can better understand the determinants that do affect my patients care, and do everything in my capacity to assist them in overcoming these