1/ Q. I hear that communities of color are experiencing more severe illness and death from #Covid_19. How does the healthcare system contribute to worse outcomes?
A. One way to think about the #healthcare system is "links in a chain."
2/ Researchers have used a framework like this (“cascades of care”) to improve clinical outcomes for other diseases.
The following are a few of the links in the chain of care for #COVID, which can shed light on weaknesses that put communities of color at greater risk
3/ HEALTH INSURANCE: Even before the pandemic, Blacks and Latinos were more likely to have inadequate #health #insurance (or none at all). When the #pandemic came along, millions lost their jobs—and, along with that, their health insurance. (pewsocialtrends.org/2020/04/21/abo…).
4/ Without insurance, families often put off seeking care, so that when they do show up, their disease is so far advanced that treatment is less effective.
5/ TESTING: In many cities, predominantly Black and Latino neighborhoods have fewer testing sites (npr.org/sections/healt…) Many states also require a referral from a doctor to get tested. This further limits access for individuals that don’t have a regular care provider.
6/ ACCESS TO CARE FACILITIES: Access to ambulatory care and pharmacies is more limited Black and Latino neighborhoods (jamanetwork.com/journals/jaman…). People of color are also less likely to have a usual place of care or regular provider, which leads to more delays in seeking care.
7/ TREATMENT: Once in care, communities of color face a myriad of other challenges to quality of care and treatment. For example, implicit prejudices of healthcare professionals are proven to impact patient-provider interactions and treatment decisions (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26469668/).
8/ In emergencies when seconds count, language issues have also led to delays in administration of care: propublica.org/article/hospit…
9/ A “cascades of care” approach can be a useful tool to visualize the gaps along the healthcare chain that contribute to more severe illness and death from #Covid_19 in communities of color. However...
10/ It’s also important to stay mindful that healthcare is just ONE component of a broader array of social factors that place Blacks and Latinos at higher risk of death from #COVID19 and other diseases.
#BlackLivesMattter #FactsMatter #healthy
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