Racism impacts healthcare quality, trust, study finds

A study published in the June 2022 issue of Healthcare found Black and Hispanic patients who faced racism in health care reported receiving worse care and trusting their clinicians less. The study authors analyzed a 2020 nationally representative sample of 1,003 U.S. Black and Hispanic households. The findings underscored the crucial role health care institutions and health professionals play in both continuing and eliminating racism in medical care. Health care institutions that successfully eliminate racism at the organization and clinical level could improve quality of care and increase trust among patients of color, the study suggested.