Our statement on racism in healthcare
June 22 2020
In 2014, the Support Network for Indigenous Women & Women of Colour (SNIWWOC) was created to address inequities in healthcare. In addition to various programs and services, Since October 2015 we’ve held monthly community dinners and have heard from hundreds of women who have shared their experiences of racism in the healthcare system.
The June 19 announcement by Minister Dix that health-care staff in emergency rooms were playing games to guess the blood-alcohol level of Indigenous patients was not shocking to us. Implicit bias in health care serves as one of the foundations for poor health outcomes. Racialized peoples are more likely to experience cardio-vascular disease, diabetes, kidney disease, poor reproductive health, and are not getting the treatment they so desperately need.
Over the years, we’ve heard doctors say that racialized women were problematic patients. We’ve seen doctors repeatedly refuse to prescribe patients with pain medication after they’ve experienced bone fractures. We’ve heard of nurses taking babies away for longer, and not put directly on mothers for skin-to-skin contact. We’ve heard of racialized moms not being asked about pain during postpartum recovery check ins, doctors yelling at moms for money/insurance coverage while pushing a baby out. There are also instances of nurses separating moms from their child and then proceeding to drug test moms who’ve experienced precipitous birth at home. White moms are congratulated for giving birth without medical help, with no assumption of drug use.
These stories led to the creation of our peer support program where SNIWWOC volunteers accompany women to health-care appointments so they have someone to advocate for them. This service should not be needed. Racism in healthcare needs to end.
Medical institutions, hospitals, clinics should be safe spaces for everyone, including racialized people. SNIWWOC is calling on the Ministry of Health to:
Suspend these workers immediately as the investigation proceeds.
Set up an anonymous tip-line for healthcare workers and members of the public to report incidents of racism.
Increased transparency of incidents of racism in healthcare.
Increased transparency with how the Ministry plans to implement race-based data across BC.
Ensure that every healthcare worker takes anti-racism and implicit bias training.
We will be hosting a virtual town hall on anti-racism in healthcare on Monday, July 6 at 7pm. We invite you to join us on Zoom or watch on Facebook Live.
Background:
https://www.timescolonist.com/news/local/b-c-investigates-claims-of-hospital-racism-where-staff-tried-to-guess-alcohol-level-1.24156312