Welcome! Below is a selection of the latest research and updates related to Black women’s health.
In addition to the studies and reports below, I lift up the lived experiences of Black women, experiences which have often already confirmed for us what the studies and articles report.
To be reminded of the latest updates, sign up here for my monthly newsletter.
Let’s get into these updates!
U.S. Government Issues Guidance Prohibiting the Practice of Performing Sensitive/Intimate Examinations Without Consent
In a huge milestone for patient consent, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services issued guidance requiring medical providers to obtain patient’s written consent before any intimate examinations, particularly if they are done on patients under anesthesia. Yale University bioethics researchers found that Black patients are four times more likely than white patients to report having received unconsented pelvic or prostate exams.
“Informed consent includes the right to refuse consent for sensitive examinations conducted for teaching purposes and the right to refuse to consent to any previously unagreed examinations to treatment while under anesthesia,” noted the letter.
A study of patient portal responses indicates discrimination in healthcare
A new study found that when patients belong to minority racial and ethnic groups, their patient portal messages to their provider were de-prioritized; they were less likely to receive a physician response and more likely to receive a response from a nurse.
Continue Reading