End of Life Disparities: The African American Community

Health disparities and health outcomes for African Americans, is egregious… A 2019 report identified that African American Adults, compared to non-Hispanic white adults, are:

• 44% More likely to die from stroke
• 20% more likely to have asthma
• 40% more likely to die from breast cancer
• 25% more likely to die from heart disease
• 52% more likely to die from cervical cancer
• 23% more likely to be obese
• 72% more likely to be diabetic

Regarding pain medication, a 2019 published article offered that the pain of African Americans is systematically under-diagnosed and under-treated

Our guests today will offer stories and discuss insights on end of life care in the African American community. Our guests in this episode include:

• Patrick Smith, professor at the Duke Divinity School and associate faculty with the Trent Center for Bioethics, Humanities, and History of Medicine at Duke University School of Medicine.
• Dr Farr Curlin, Josiah C. Trent Professor of Medical Humanities in the Trent Center for Bioethics, Humanities and History of Medicine, and Co-Director of the Theology Medicine, and Culture Initiative at Duke Divinity School.
• Claretta Dupree, Chair of the Academy of Fellows at the Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity at Trinity International University, Deerfield, Illinois.

Additional resources relating to or referenced in this episode:

• Center for Practical Bioethics, Richard Payne, MD
• Palliative Care in the African American Community
• Perceptual Contributions to Racial Bias in Pain Recognition
• Racial Bias in Pain Assessment and Treatment Recommendations, and False Beliefs About Biological Differences Between Blacks and Whites

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