New database launched to connect Black patients with Black healthcare providers

A physician-led organization in Toronto has created a database that it hopes will help improve health outcomes for Black patients by connecting them with Black healthcare providers. The digital directory, which launched on Sept. 5 by the Black Healthcare Professionals Network, is aimed at Black Canadians who often struggle to find providers who understand their backgrounds, according to a CBC News report. Family physician Dr. Nikolai Whyte, the network's co-founder and managing director, said the creation of the directory was driven in large part by research showing that health outcomes among Black patients can be dependent on the race of their healthcare provider. One study, published by the Association of American Colleges, found the experiences of Black patients improved with doctors of the same race and reduced incidences of medical racism, which happens sometimes when Black patients are treated by white providers. Read: Canada's top medical journal acknowledges its role in perpetuating anti-Black racism Dr. Whyte said the new directory will also help Black healthcare providers connect with each other. "It helps to create an ecosystem within the Black healthcare space where other providers can find each other and start to collaborate," she said. Other studies support the idea of directing Black patients to healthcare providers of the same race. A Stanford University School of Medicine survey of 1,300 Black male patients in California found that those assigned to a Black doctor were more likely to discuss health concerns they had not disclosed previously to another non-Black doctor. This openness may have been the result of patients feeling more “at ease” with a doctor of the same race, concluded the Stanford researchers. In Toronto, a pilot project at a community health centre was able to boost cancer screening rates between 2013 and 2018 simply by providing patients with educational materials in different languages and that featured images of Black doctors and staff from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Getting listed in the directory is voluntary and all submissions are vetted to ensure licenses are in good standing, said the network in a press release. The goal is to have a comprehensive database of doctors, nurses, pharmacists, dentists, psychotherapists, dietitians, massage therapists and other practitioners. Read: Is melanoma over-diagnosed in white patients?

New database launched to connect Black patients with Black healthcare providers

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