Healthcare system treats me differently because I’m Black - even though I work in it

You hurt your back or your child has an earache. Naturally, you want to call your doctor’s office to make an appointment. But you hesitate before you pick up the phone.

There are worries about how to pay for the visit, how to get to the appointment, whether you’ll be able to take time off work, and for people of color, how you’ll be treated. Even if you’re a nurse, like me.

In spite of 32 years as a healthcare professional, my experience with the system includes being dismissed, not having my health concerns taken seriously and being talked down to.

It’s a constant struggle to be seen, heard and treated with dignity and respect. For example, during my last appointment the medical assistant accused me of being in the clinic only to receive a prescription for pain medication, which she further insinuated I would sell on the street.

Another typical interaction: When I recently accompanied my granddaughter on a doctor visit to control her diabetes, the providers suggested I had a hand in mismanaging her health instead of trying to improve it.

These are some of the many reasons that Black and Brown people have undiagnosed or untreated medical conditions. Things have only gotten worse during this pandemic.

We can only avoid new crisis levels if we invest now in rebuilding Washington’s public health, child care, senior and other critical services.

Systemic health disparities make people of color more vulnerable to heart disease, respiratory problems and diabetes and thus more susceptible to COVID-19.

Unemployment, living in poverty, food insecurity, not owning a home (or having housing that is not safe or stable, or in areas with high pollution) and not being able to get regular medical care all increase our risk of disease and early death. Just the stress of dealing with racism has been linked to negative health outcomes.

If and when we get to a clinic, we see providers who don’t often look like us. Only 5% of doctors are Black; just 6% of physicians are Latinx. Unfortunately, that keeps up the barriers to better health for communities of color.

It’s no surprise to me that 32% of Black Americans say they’ve been discriminated against, according to a report by McKinsey & Company on racial and ethnic health inequities. It’s only when I mention my experience as a nurse that I’m treated with respect.

Imagine those who don’t have the background, language or confidence to advocate for better care. Let me tell you, discrimination and accusations have no place in helping people in need of medical treatment. But it’s no wonder why so many Black and Brown folks delay seeking medical treatment.

While we can’t fix all of these problems immediately, we can take the first steps. Making the health care system more equitable will take all of us working to fix it. But we can. Together, we can make sure we all have what we need to get and stay well.

Decades, even centuries, of systemic racism have stacked the deck against communities of color. We were hit hardest by the last recession and were just starting to recover when the pandemic hit.

Now we’re taking the brunt of COVID-19. Nationally we’re getting sick and dying at much higher rates. Cutting the services we need most now – child care, nutrition, health care, assistance for seniors – will only set us back further.

When politicians call for cutting services that impact communities of color, they must know there is a real and painful human cost. My story is unfortunately not unique.

The best solution is to keep money flowing to communities, continue providing services that we all rely on, keep people working and making sure everyone does their part, including asking the people succeeding the most – the wealthiest individuals and corporations – to pay more in taxes.

When we join together across our differences we can ensure that all our communities have the resources they need to thrive. Together, we make the future, and this is the moment when we can make Washington a place where all can prosper.

Sharon Stephens-Miller of Spanaway is a registered nurse working as a nursing home complaint investigator for the Washington Department of Social and Health Services.