Examining the Relationship between African-Americans and their Physicians

For years, there has been a bad history amongst the relationship between African-Americans and their fellow medical institutions. Many African-Americans do not believe that medical professionals have their best interest at heart. Oftentimes, their white counterparts may receive better care, even when they have the same condition. Many African-Americans may even face barriers that their white counterparts will not experience, and will be denied access to healthcare. This results in more deaths and critical illnesses of African-Americans. In order to discover the underlying problem and a possible solution, a review of the literature was initiated. Using a literature matrix and reviewing peer-reviewed articles, information was gathered to determine what the underlying issue is regarding the relationship between African-Americans and their healthcare resources. Using this information, a hypothesis was developed to address this issue, so that the relationship of African-Americans and healthcare providers will improve. With an improved system, African-Americans will be able to receive the proper healthcare that they need. Therefore, conclusions, based on a preliminary literature review is how African-Americans perceive and experience interactions with healthcare providers and the medical field. This session will relay the process that has been undertaken to identify these sources and the preliminary observations