Location
Moultrie, GA
Start Date
9-5-2023 1:00 PM
End Date
9-5-2023 4:00 PM
Description
Background:
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the medical profession underwent a physician burnout crisis. Post pandemic, physician burnout transformed into an epidemic that has contributed to the inability of physician supply to meet patient demand in the USA. Recent studies by the American Medical Association predict by 2034, a widespread physician shortage across both primary care and non-primary care specialties (AAMC, 2021). As a result, medical institutions have implemented programs to address this shortage. While this shortage is concerning and needs to be addressed, it isn’t the only shortage at hand. Minorities are deeply underrepresented in the medical field with respect to their proportions in the overall USA population. The ongoing physician shortage further exacerbates the disproportionate number of minority physicians. Furthermore, minority underrepresentation isn’t confined to the profession but is also observed among students in medical schools across the United States. Simultaneously, these same underrepresented minority groups disproportionately experience mortality and disability from disease at higher rates compared to their White counterparts (Smedley, 2001).
This study analyzes the inverse relationship between the amount minority physicians present in a community and the prevalence of disease among these same minority populations. It also seeks to understand how representation impacts minority health outcomes.
Aim: Involving minority communities in the development and implementation of healthcare policies and programs can lead to better healthcare outcomes for those communities.
Methods:
A systematic literature review was conducted using PubMed, Scopus, and EBSCOhost databases using keywords [(“MINORITY PHYSICIAN” OR “UNDERREPRESENTED MINORITY PHYSICIANS”)] AND [(“MINORITY PATIENTS” OR “MINORITY PATIENT HEALTH OUTCOMES”) AND (“COMMUNITY-BASED PARTICIPATORY RESEARCH”)]
Results:
The excess burden of illness in minority populations can be contributed to numerous complex factors, including but not limited to socioeconomic inequality, environmental and occupational exposures, discrimination, health risk factors, and less access to health insurance and healthcare. Practical, actionable strategies to address these disparities should include the engagement of families in leadership roles, provision of comprehensive healthcare, cross-sectoral institutional and community collaborations, and the use of community-based participatory research (CBPR) methods. CBPR has demonstrated promise in enhancing the effectiveness of interventions. However, the challenge remains to understand how and what type of partnerships and participation most effectively enhance the integration of science and practice to eliminate disparities.
Discussion:
Researchers, community leaders, and healthcare professionals are integral in delivering quality healthcare to minority communities. Researchers must be culturally competent enough to be able to go out into these communities and collect accurate data about these communities. Researchers must find effective strategies and methodologies to gain the trust of the minority community that their research is directly impacting. This can effectively be done by working with local community leaders and community organizations. Local community leaders have the responsibility of voicing the issues and barriers that the community has in accessing quality healthcare. Healthcare professionals have a responsibility to take the research data and work with community leaders to find effective ways to address disparities. In some cases, they may even have to seek funding through government agencies to ensure long-term solutions.
Embargo Period
8-29-2023
Included in
The impact of minority physician representation on minority patient health
Moultrie, GA
Background:
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the medical profession underwent a physician burnout crisis. Post pandemic, physician burnout transformed into an epidemic that has contributed to the inability of physician supply to meet patient demand in the USA. Recent studies by the American Medical Association predict by 2034, a widespread physician shortage across both primary care and non-primary care specialties (AAMC, 2021). As a result, medical institutions have implemented programs to address this shortage. While this shortage is concerning and needs to be addressed, it isn’t the only shortage at hand. Minorities are deeply underrepresented in the medical field with respect to their proportions in the overall USA population. The ongoing physician shortage further exacerbates the disproportionate number of minority physicians. Furthermore, minority underrepresentation isn’t confined to the profession but is also observed among students in medical schools across the United States. Simultaneously, these same underrepresented minority groups disproportionately experience mortality and disability from disease at higher rates compared to their White counterparts (Smedley, 2001).
This study analyzes the inverse relationship between the amount minority physicians present in a community and the prevalence of disease among these same minority populations. It also seeks to understand how representation impacts minority health outcomes.
Aim: Involving minority communities in the development and implementation of healthcare policies and programs can lead to better healthcare outcomes for those communities.
Methods:
A systematic literature review was conducted using PubMed, Scopus, and EBSCOhost databases using keywords [(“MINORITY PHYSICIAN” OR “UNDERREPRESENTED MINORITY PHYSICIANS”)] AND [(“MINORITY PATIENTS” OR “MINORITY PATIENT HEALTH OUTCOMES”) AND (“COMMUNITY-BASED PARTICIPATORY RESEARCH”)]
Results:
The excess burden of illness in minority populations can be contributed to numerous complex factors, including but not limited to socioeconomic inequality, environmental and occupational exposures, discrimination, health risk factors, and less access to health insurance and healthcare. Practical, actionable strategies to address these disparities should include the engagement of families in leadership roles, provision of comprehensive healthcare, cross-sectoral institutional and community collaborations, and the use of community-based participatory research (CBPR) methods. CBPR has demonstrated promise in enhancing the effectiveness of interventions. However, the challenge remains to understand how and what type of partnerships and participation most effectively enhance the integration of science and practice to eliminate disparities.
Discussion:
Researchers, community leaders, and healthcare professionals are integral in delivering quality healthcare to minority communities. Researchers must be culturally competent enough to be able to go out into these communities and collect accurate data about these communities. Researchers must find effective strategies and methodologies to gain the trust of the minority community that their research is directly impacting. This can effectively be done by working with local community leaders and community organizations. Local community leaders have the responsibility of voicing the issues and barriers that the community has in accessing quality healthcare. Healthcare professionals have a responsibility to take the research data and work with community leaders to find effective ways to address disparities. In some cases, they may even have to seek funding through government agencies to ensure long-term solutions.