Skip to content
  • About
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Book
  • Careers
  • Podcast
  • Recommended
  • Speaking
  • All
  • Physician
  • Practice
  • Policy
  • Finance
  • Conditions
  • .edu
  • Patient
  • Meds
  • Tech
  • Social
  • Video
    • All
    • Physician
    • Practice
    • Policy
    • Finance
    • Conditions
    • .edu
    • Patient
    • Meds
    • Tech
    • Social
    • Video
    • About
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Book
    • Careers
    • Podcast
    • Recommended
    • Speaking

COVID-19 proved that diverse voices make health care better

Naprisha Taylor
Policy
June 16, 2021
Share
Tweet
Share

I’ve been reflecting on how the scientific world came together over the past 15-months to take on a viral pandemic. Despite unprecedented circumstances, the field achieved one of the most incredible feats of modern medicine, and for once, we achieved it together.

The record-speed development of COVID-19 vaccines was achieved in large part because diverse perspectives came together across countries and across disciplines to scale their collective impact.

Consider that two years ago, the estimated timeline for building a new vaccine was up to 10 years. We’re where we are today because an international team from diverse backgrounds rallied together and reenergized previously disregarded mRNA research to create something entirely new. Without the inclusion of these multiple perspectives and voices, a safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine would not have been possible.

This herculean effort showcased what we already knew – that the addition of more voices to the table leads to richer insights, better problem-solving, and more opportunities. Diversity makes for stronger teams and better care delivery. Diverse teams are better at problem-solving and bring perspectives to help understand the unique challenges of typically underrepresented groups, allowing physicians to better address health disparities and conditions that may present differently among different genders, age groups, and backgrounds. Just last year, a 20-year-old medical student in London shed light on the fact that skin diseases present differently on different colored skin – a finding uncovered by a simple observation: “But what will it look like on darker skin?”

In the U.S., minority groups in health care remain significantly underrepresented: Only 0.4 percent of U.S. medical doctors identify as Hispanic or Latino, even though this group makes up 17 percent of the U.S. population, and only 4 percent of U.S. medical doctors identify as African American, even though this group makes up 13 percent of the U.S. population.

These gaps in representation cause significant gaps in care. The medical community must be able to build patient trust and increase communication about health needs from physicians that come from similar backgrounds or at least better understand how to address the needs of patients who are adversely impacted by social determinants of health and may lack confidence in the health care system.

The benefits of diverse clinician teams extend beyond improving patient relationships and even patient treatment. Studies have shown that health care organizations with diverse teams have stronger innovation, communication, and improved financial performance – the premier business case for supporting diverse talent recruitment and promotion at all levels of the organization. Health care organizations must also confront the gaps in representation by benchmarking their progress towards a diverse employee population that represents the members they serve.

It’s only when progress is measured – internally and externally – that organizations can acknowledge and take steps towards rectifying the gaps that exist within their own employee population and their delivery of care. It is not enough for diversity, equity, and inclusion to be a corporate attitude; it must be a priority that is woven into every facet of the business.

We’ve seen the benefits of diversity and collaboration internationally as we fought COVID-19, but now it is up to health care organizations to improve representation in their ranks in order to reach true health equity and improve the quality of care we provide. We are stronger together, and there is no telling what the health care industry could accomplish if U.S. health care companies better reflected the diversity of our population.

Naprisha Taylor is head of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I), Evolent Health, and can be reached on LinkedIn. 

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

The connection between mental health and what we eat

June 16, 2021 Kevin 0
…
Next

Tap — yes, tap — to relieve stress

June 16, 2021 Kevin 1
…

Tagged as: COVID, Public Health & Policy

Post navigation

< Previous Post
The connection between mental health and what we eat
Next Post >
Tap — yes, tap — to relieve stress

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

  • How social media can help or hurt your health care career

    Health eCareers
  • COVID-19 adds a new health care gap: internet disparity

    Sandra Swantek, MD and Magdalena Bednarczyk, MD
  • The COVID-19 pandemic is a catalyst for reimagining future health care delivery

    Imelda Dacones, MD
  • Health care delivery after COVID-19: Move more procedures to the outpatient setting

    Shikha Jain, MD and Krishna Jain, MD
  • Confronting the financial barriers to health care has to be a centerpiece of any COVID-19 strategy

    Daniel X. Pham
  • Reflecting on my experience as a teenage health care worker during the COVID-19 pandemic

    Ananya Raghavan

More in Policy

  • How locum tenens work helps physicians and APPs reclaim control

    Brian Sutter
  • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

    Ilan Shapiro, MD
  • Why physician voices matter in the fight against anti-LGBTQ+ laws

    BJ Ferguson
  • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

    Carlin Lockwood
  • What Adam Smith would say about America’s for-profit health care

    M. Bennet Broner, PhD
  • The lab behind the lens: Equity begins with diagnosis

    Michael Misialek, MD
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Recent Posts

    • It’s time for pain protocols to catch up with the opioid crisis

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • First impressions happen online—not in your exam room

      Sara Meyer | Social media
    • How locum tenens work helps physicians and APPs reclaim control

      Brian Sutter | Policy
    • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

      Howard Smith, MD | Physician
    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How Mark Twain would dismantle today’s flawed medical AI

      Neil Baum, MD and Mark Ibsen, MD | Tech

Subscribe to KevinMD and never miss a story!

Get free updates delivered free to your inbox.


Find jobs at
Careers by KevinMD.com

Search thousands of physician, PA, NP, and CRNA jobs now.

Learn more

Leave a Comment

Founded in 2004 by Kevin Pho, MD, KevinMD.com is the web’s leading platform where physicians, advanced practitioners, nurses, medical students, and patients share their insight and tell their stories.

Social

  • Like on Facebook
  • Follow on Twitter
  • Connect on Linkedin
  • Subscribe on Youtube
  • Instagram

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why Medicaid cuts should alarm every doctor

      Ilan Shapiro, MD | Policy
    • When the diagnosis is personal: What my mother’s Alzheimer’s taught me about healing

      Pearl Jones, MD | Conditions
    • Key strategies for smooth EHR transitions in health care

      Sandra Johnson | Tech
    • Reassessing the impact of CDC’s opioid guidelines on chronic pain care [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • Why flashy AI tools won’t fix health care without real infrastructure

      David Carmouche, MD | Tech
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • How dismantling DEI endangers the future of medical care

      Shashank Madhu and Christian Tallo | Education
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • How scales of justice saved a doctor-patient relationship

      Neil Baum, MD | Physician
    • The silent toll of ICE raids on U.S. patient care

      Carlin Lockwood | Policy
    • Why shared decision-making in medicine often fails

      M. Bennet Broner, PhD | Conditions
  • Recent Posts

    • It’s time for pain protocols to catch up with the opioid crisis

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • First impressions happen online—not in your exam room

      Sara Meyer | Social media
    • How locum tenens work helps physicians and APPs reclaim control

      Brian Sutter | Policy
    • The hidden incentives driving frivolous malpractice lawsuits

      Howard Smith, MD | Physician
    • Why what doctors say matters more than you think [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • How Mark Twain would dismantle today’s flawed medical AI

      Neil Baum, MD and Mark Ibsen, MD | Tech

MedPage Today Professional

An Everyday Health Property Medpage Today
  • Terms of Use | Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • DMCA Policy
All Content © KevinMD, LLC
Site by Outthink Group

Leave a Comment

Comments are moderated before they are published. Please read the comment policy.

Loading Comments...