Join clinical experts, thought leaders, and advocates for a collaborative discussion on the issues of health disparities, structural racism, and medicine as we examine specific dermatologic diseases in a series of four free and open educational webinars.
Implicit bias and structural racism play a central role in the development of health care disparities. One of the critically important areas in medicine is the misdiagnosis of disease in people with darker skin types due to implicit bias and the lack of awareness among physicians in recognizing the disease pattern. Clinicians in primary care, emergency medicine, hospital medicine, surgery, pediatrics, and other medical specialties can deliver improved care if they can recognize and diagnose medical conditions based on skin findings in patients of color. This four-part series aims to improve diagnosis in people of color, describe pathogenesis and treatment of diseases, develop cultural competency, and impact change in health care policy so more is done to reduce racial bias in medical practice and medical research. Providing this education, in turn, will ultimately help reduce health disparities and improve the lives of underrepresented minority populations.
Panelists will define and discuss hair disorders in people of color. External and systemic diseases can cause hair loss. Misdiagnosis often occurs when hair loss is considered cosmetic and not a medical problem. Ethnicity affects the significance and cultural meaning of hair loss, and physicians need to know how each patient is being affected. Hair disorders constitute a significant health problem and affect health care access because of the length and complexity of the visits.
Upon completion of this webinar you will be able to:
1 Define and describe the pathogenesis and research of the diagnosis and treatment of scarring and nonscarring hair disorders.
2 Illustrate how health disparities, structural racism, and implicit bias manifest in health education, diagnosis and treatment, and research regarding hair disorders.
3 Develop awareness, sensitivity, and competency in the cultural, socioeconomic, and health impact of hair in people of color.
4 Identify funding resources to increase the amount of research and training of residents in pathology and the use of diagnostic training tools.
Moderator: Amy McMichael, MD
Panelists: Ncoza Dlova, MBChB, FCDerm, PhD and Andrew F. Alexis, MD, MPH
