The Uncomfortable Reality of Our Healthcare System

for September 7, 2020

​Throughout history, the healthcare system has neglected and exploited communities of color. This week on our social media platforms, we explored organizations that support communities that are often denied access to proper health and wellness programs due to their social and economic status.

The Esperanza Center, in North Philadelphia, serves communities that live below the poverty level. They have integrated programs that help reduce the distrust among healthcare professionals and under-served communities. COVID-19’s death rate among the Black community is more than 2x as high than in white communities, and in the LatinX community it is 50% more, despite the fact that the Black and LatinX communities combined only make up 30% of the US population. The Esperanza center gives these communities access to proper health and wellness programs to help reduce the curve. 

Below are some helpful resources on this topic:

• “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks” by Rebecca Skloot
• “Just Medicine: A Cure for Racial Inequality in American Health Care” by Dayna Bowen Matthew
• Implicit Bias and Racial Disparities in Health Care
• NPR – Racial Disparities observed during COVID
• The Importance of Black Doctors
• Aunt Marthas
• Esperanza Health Center