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

The Black feminist revolution medicine needs

Micaela Stevenson
Education
October 3, 2021
Share
Tweet
Share

Black feminism describes that Black women are inherently valuable and the specific liberation of Black women is necessary in its own right.  It parses out these political identities and desires to have true humanity for Black women—arguing that it is impossible for there to be bondage of any other group when we liberate marginalized genders and Black people as these populations are seen as the most marginalized people.

Medical culture is in almost direct opposition to Black feminism. There can be many positive aspects, such as focusing on promoting evidence-based approaches to care and centering the patient in the care process. However, medical culture often does not promote collaboration between team members and is hierarchical and punishes people for “stepping out of line” when someone who is perceived as being less important steps outside of their defined role by questioning care and management. Rather than taking the time to even consider the possibilities of there being teaching opportunities or even considering the possibility that others are right, medical culture and training promote trauma and identification with one’s abuser for medical trainees, as trainers at many levels and the entire medical system is traumatic and abusive. There is glory in insomnia and failure to eat and seeing patients when we can no longer take care of ourselves, and not seeing our families and refilling our own cups. This glory comes in the form of promotions and awards for working excessively.  Consequently, we fall into a trap where we lose our empathy, families, and health. This burnout at many levels leads to poor patient outcomes such as longer discharge recovery and lower satisfaction.

This culture also does not promote motherhood or childbearing and increases dissatisfaction with work, and increases burnout in medicine. This is clearly harmful to both male and female physicians at multiple levels. This does not promote men being active fathers in their children’s lives or having healthy personal and professional lives. This culture promotes alienation from family, mental illness, which is increasingly harming, especially, Black people who more commonly experience racism and an absence of support in their work.

Medicine is clearly necessary, though oppressive and abusive. However, understanding the need for liberation of Black women and freeing all marginalized people will allow political, social, and economic freedom.  This understanding will improve 1) the care any patient receives; 2) how medical professionals at every level experience their work; 3) how patients present to medical care; and, 4) health disparities in medicine.

To inherently improve the care patients receive, we must understand that this framework will first and foremost allow professionals to see the true disparities in medical care. These professionals will begin to address the real processes that lead to poor outcomes in patients due to the medical systems. We will see how we fail to listen to many patients and fail to diagnose them because we view some people as inherently less credible than others and destroy that experience. We will begin to approach care with patients from a place of love and understanding. Using both a lens of understanding and applying science and pathology to come from a place beyond care and respect, but actual love will transform our relationships with patients and their outcomes.

To improve the experiences of medical professionals at all levels, we will understand that every single person on our teams, regardless of their race, gender, cultural background, or status in this system provides a valuable contribution to this team. This means including everyone directly caring for a patient consistently will be invited to rounds to discuss the patients. This means open lines of communication between all team members who should feel comfortable approaching any person on the team about a problem. This means taking on licensure-appropriate responsibilities for others on the team when they may not be able to perform those tasks. This means recognizing the burnout that others on the team are experiencing, offering to help, conveying our vulnerability, and asking for help from others on our team to help ourselves and our patients. This means clear accountability from everyone on the team but clear forgiveness and moving forward when a mistake is made. This also means that team leaders set the tone and expectations of equitable care for every patient and challenging biases from everyone.

In trying to decrease health disparities and improve presentation to medical care, using a Black feminist perspective will allow us to recognize the cause of the disparities and promote taking specific and helpful action steps in decreasing these disparities.  Rather than only engaging in implicit bias training is not; instead, we should discuss inherent connections between slavery, sexism, incarceration, and the medical system, and clear steps are to reduce these in each respective health system. It means understanding patients’ experiences and believing these experiences are real and that we can reduce the poor experiences and outcomes that patients experience. We also must believe that there is value in reducing the trauma patients experience, having clear and honest conversations with patients, and providing quality care to each patient. Using this specific framework, we can implore an understanding of each patient, each team member, and truly improve the experiences of every single person.

For decades, professionals have discussed the toxicity of medicine. However, there has been limited change in culture shift in medicine. It’s time to try something radical to change medicine drastically for the better.

Micaela Stevenson is a medical student.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com

Prev

Working in a rural emergency department during the pandemic

October 3, 2021 Kevin 0
…
Next

Medicine's science has advanced. Medicine's art has stalled. [PODCAST]

October 3, 2021 Kevin 0
…

Tagged as: Public Health & Policy

Post navigation

< Previous Post
Working in a rural emergency department during the pandemic
Next Post >
Medicine's science has advanced. Medicine's art has stalled. [PODCAST]

ADVERTISEMENT

More by Micaela Stevenson

  • Doctoring during Kyle Rittenhouse’s acquittal

    Micaela Stevenson
  • A story of medicine’s stolen children

    Micaela Stevenson
  • Formalized mentorship as a requirement for medical schools

    Micaela Stevenson

Related Posts

  • Victimizing patients as a Black feminist

    Micaela Stevenson
  • Why it’s time for more black men in medicine

    Adam J. Milam, MD, PhD
  • Medicine vs. racism: white coats for black lives

    Divya Seth, MD, MPH
  • How social media can advance humanism in medicine

    Pooja Lakshmin, MD
  • The difference between learning medicine and doing medicine

    Steven Zhang, MD
  • The trap of Black excellence in medical education

    Helio Neves da Silva

More in Education

  • Why medical schools must ditch lectures and embrace active learning

    Arlen Meyers, MD, MBA
  • Why helping people means more than getting an MD

    Vaishali Jha
  • Residency match tips: Building mentorship, research, and community

    Simran Kaur, MD and Eva Shelton, MD
  • How I learned to stop worrying and love AI

    Rajeev Dutta
  • Why medical student debt is killing primary care in America

    Alexander Camp
  • Why the pre-med path is pushing future doctors to the brink

    Jordan Williamson, MEd
  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

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

View 3 Comments >

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

  • Most Popular

  • Past Week

    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
    • How New Mexico became a malpractice lawsuit hotspot

      Patrick Hudson, MD | Physician
    • Why doctors are reclaiming control from burnout culture

      Maureen Gibbons, MD | Physician
    • Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

      Dave Cummings, RN | Policy
    • How digital tools are reshaping the doctor-patient relationship

      Vineet Vishwanath | Tech
    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
  • Past 6 Months

    • Why tracking cognitive load could save doctors and patients

      Hiba Fatima Hamid | Education
    • Why are medical students turning away from primary care? [PODCAST]

      The Podcast by KevinMD | Podcast
    • What the world must learn from the life and death of Hind Rajab

      Saba Qaiser, RN | Conditions
    • Why “do no harm” might be harming modern medicine

      Sabooh S. Mubbashar, MD | Physician
    • Here’s what providers really need in a modern EHR

      Laura Kohlhagen, MD, MBA | Tech
    • The hidden health risks in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act

      Trevor Lyford, MPH | Policy
  • Recent Posts

    • How President Biden’s cognitive health shapes political and legal trust

      Muhamad Aly Rifai, MD | Conditions
    • Decoding your medical bill: What those charges really mean

      Cheryl Spang | Finance
    • The emotional first responders of aesthetic medicine

      Sarah White, APRN | Conditions
    • Why testosterone matters more than you think in women’s health

      Andrea Caamano, MD | Conditions
    • A mind to guide the machine: Why physicians must help shape artificial intelligence in medicine

      Shanice Spence-Miller, MD | Tech
    • How subjective likability practices undermine Canada’s health workforce recruitment and retention

      Olumuyiwa Bamgbade, MD | Physician

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

The Black feminist revolution medicine needs
3 comments

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

Loading Comments...