Health and Wellness

Mississippi faces shortage of black doctors, even as lawmakers increasingly crack down on diversity programs

Published

4 months ago

July 18, 2024

IAM

Jerrian Reedy was 9 when his father was admitted to a hospital in Hattiesburg, about two hours northeast of New Orleans, with three gunshot wounds. Reedy recalled visiting his father within the intensive care unit that summer in 2009, even though children weren’t normally allowed in that part of the hospital.

“Just seeing him lying in bed, in a hospital bed, was traumatic for me, to say the least,” Reedy said.

His father died per week after his admission, in the center of a nine-month period by which Reedy also lost his aunt and grandmother. “They say death comes in threes,” he said.

This chain of events led him to pursue a medical profession that might help him protect other children from losing family members too early.

Fifteen years later, Reedy has accomplished his first 12 months on the University of Mississippi School of Medicine, a remarkable accomplishment, and never simply because his profession path was born of grief and trauma. Reedy is one of a small group of black medical students in a state where nearly 4 in 10 — but just one in 10 doctors — discover as black or African American. Of the 660 medical students enrolled in the identical four-year program as Reedy, 82 students, or about 12%, are black.

Medical schools across the country are scrambling to recruit Black, Latino and Native American students, who’re still disproportionately underrepresented within the medical field. Studies have shown that patients of color prefer to see doctors of their race — and a few studies have shown that health outcomes are higher for Black patients who see Black doctors.

But a recent surge in opposition from Republicans threatens to undermine those efforts, school administrators say, and will deepen the deep disparities in health care access already experienced by people of color.

From 2023 – the 12 months by which Supreme Court votes to ban positive discrimination In higher education, greater than two dozen states, including Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina and Texas, have introduced or passed laws geared toward restricting or banning diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, programs.

“I don’t expect this movement of anti-DEI legislation to slow down or stop at all,” said Anton Gunn, a health care consultant and former head of the Office of External Affairs on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “And it will likely intensify if Donald Trump is given the chance to become president of the United States again.”

Diversity programs meet resistance

In 2023, Florida and Texas became the primary states to pass laws banning DEI activities in higher education. Several other states, including Idaho, North Carolina and Wyoming, passed laws targeting such programs this 12 months.

In Mississippi, state Rep. Becky Currie and state Sen. Angela Burks Hill, each Republicans, introduced separate bills that may restrict how colleges and universities can spend money on DEI initiatives. Both bills have stalled in legislative committees and haven’t been dropped at the 2024 Legislature for a vote.

In a press release, Hill said Mississippi needs more doctors of all specialties, not only Black ones, and that she believes money spent on salaries and DEI programs should go toward initiatives that profit all students.

“Qualifications should determine who gets into medical school, not race or socioeconomic status,” she said. “Can’t we just be happy with more highly qualified doctors, regardless of race? I thought the goal was a race-blind society.”

The movement to ban DEI programs enjoys broad support from conservatives across the country.

Jay Greene, a senior fellow on the conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation, said he believes diversity programs “fail for hundreds of reasons.” he cited research he had conducted with a conservative public health group called Do No Harm, which rejects the idea that access to black doctors improves outcomes for black patients.

“That’s not to say there aren’t potential benefits to greater diversity in the medical profession,” Greene said. For example, more black doctors could encourage more black kids to contemplate careers in health care, he said. “But that benefit doesn’t apply to health outcomes.”

Meanwhile, school administrators are closely monitoring progress on such regulations.

In March, the University of Florida all DEI programs have been eliminated and fired employees related to those efforts. In Alabama, lawmakers and faculty leaders are grappling with a law signed that very same month by Republican Gov. Kay Ivey that may ban DEI programs in public schools, state agencies and universities starting Oct. 1.

“We have to be very, very careful,” said Richard deShazo, who teaches on the Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine on the University of Alabama at Birmingham and was chairman of a committee that raised money for black medical students.

“You can’t raise money for black kids. You have to raise money for medical students,” he said.

Bitter history

The shortage of black doctors is just not unique to Mississippi. The same story may very well be told in lots of other places, especially within the South, where greater than half of all black Americans live and where health outcomes consistently rank among the many worst in United States.

But if we have a look at Mississippi, one of the unhealthiest states within the country, we see how the roots of systemic racism proceed to shape the nation’s health care workforce.

“A lot of black doctors in the state have a bad taste in their mouths about our medical school,” said Demondes Haynes, associate dean for medical school admissions on the University of Mississippi Medical Center, where he graduated in 1999 as one of 4 black students in his class.

Mississippi is home to an estimated 1.1 million black people, but has fewer than 600 black doctors. Research suggests health outcomes would improve if there have been more of them. One study was published last 12 months within the medical journal JAMA Network Open It was found that life expectancy was longer amongst black patients in counties where a better percentage of primary care physicians are black.

In a 2018 study of greater than 1,300 black men in Oakland, California, those assigned to a black doctor were more more likely to comply with screening for diabetes, cholesterol and other health problems, in response to findings published in 2018 by the National Bureau of Economic Research.

“We’re absolutely not saying every black patient has to have a black doctor,” Haynes said. But because Mississippi’s patient population is diverse, “they should at least have the right to say, ‘This is what I want,’” he added.

But most black patients don’t have that alternative. Nearly two dozen of Mississippi’s 82 counties haven’t any black doctors, while 4 counties say they haven’t any doctors in any respect, in response to Medical Staff Report published by the state in 2019

For greater than a century, from its founding within the mid-Nineteenth century, the University of Mississippi had not admitted black students—and that policy prolonged to its medical school. In 1972, nearly a decade after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 outlawed racial segregation in higher education, the primary black doctor to graduate from Jackson Medical School. Even then, only a few black students were accepted into medical school every year.

Before the federal government banned schools from rejecting black applicants because of race, prospective black doctors who applied were directed to historically black colleges and universities, or HBCUs, such as Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Haynes said.

Many older black doctors in Mississippi still remember getting rejection letters, he said, pointing to composite photographs of graduating doctors that adorn the partitions of the medical school constructing in Jackson. Many of the earliest composites, dating from the Fifties, show classes of all-white and almost all-male students.

“The history of Mississippi—everyone remembers it,” Haynes said. “And those who have experienced it have a hard time with it.”

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“Shaping Possibilities”

On a damp Saturday morning in mid-April, 17-year-old Dorothy Gray, a highschool sophomore, walked to a hospital bed at Jackson Medical School to intubate a simulated patient within the simulation lab.

Gray was one of greater than 100 highschool and college students who participated within the annual African American Visiting Day on the University of Mississippi Medical School, established greater than a decade ago to generate interest amongst prospective black students. Administrators, who also organize special visiting days for Latino and Native American students, said anyone, regardless of race or ethnicity, is welcome to participate. They acknowledge that the majority participants won’t turn into doctors, and their goal is just not to provide preferential treatment to minority applicants.

“It’s about shaping the possibilities of what could be,” said Loretta Jackson-Williams, associate dean for medical education. “These kids are on the edge of choosing something that’s really hard for their future, or choosing an easier path. That choice doesn’t happen overnight.”

In addition to African American Visiting Day, Mississippi medical school officials also offer a test prep program for applicants from underrepresented backgrounds who weren’t accepted to medical school.

The school recently identified 16 applicants, 12 of whom were black, who weren’t accepted to medical school within the last admissions cycle because their MCAT scores were too low. This 12 months, those applicants will receive a test-prep course developed by The Princeton Review — free of charge — and can have the chance to satisfy with administrators to learn strengthen their medical school applications.

“So many students have never heard someone say, ‘You can do this. I believe you can do this,'” said Dan Coleman, the medical school’s director of outreach.

For Jerrian Reedy, who desires to be an orthopedic surgeon, the road to medical school took years. He took advantage of the University of Mississippi Medical Center’s PROMISE program — short for Promoting Recruitment Opportunities in Medicine with Individual Study Experiences — which offers admission to underprivileged students who meet certain qualifications, including a 3.0 grade point average in undergraduate science classes.

During his second 12 months of undergraduate studies, Reedy saw a chance to learn more about medical school when Haynes, the associate dean, visited the Ole Miss campus in Oxford to interview students.

“I saw a few spots open, I put my name down,” he said. “The rest is history.”

KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth health journalism and is one of the important operating programs of KFF, an independent source of health policy research, polling and journalism. Learn more about KFF.

This article was originally published on : thegrio.com

Related Topics:Black Health Lifestyle Medical Differences

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Health and Wellness

Willow Smith’s debut collection with Moncler is now available – Essence

Published

3 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Moncler

Willow Smith’s debut collection with Moncler has been launched. The capsule is a mixture of the inside of a musician, actress, writer and creator. In it, a futuristic and unbelievable world is explored through clothes. Smith’s personal style was also showcased. The lineup was originally revealed in Shanghai.

Moncler

“Minimalism and utilitarianism. Femininity and masculinity. Black and white. “Putting ideas together in an elegant way is something that really excites me and I wanted to explore that with this collection,” Willow shared.

“Willow’s magnetic energy is captured in a series of images exploring the primary themes of the collection: clashing contrasts, rebirth and renewal, yin and yang, recent beginnings – inspired by Moncler’s mountain origins and love of nature. “Willow’s creativity influences every aspect of the videos and photos accompanying the collection: she not only drives the concept, but also models her designs, narrates the short film and provides the soundtrack,” the brand said in a press release. The launch is accompanied by black and white campaign photos – the dramatization of those photos ushers in an exciting era for Smith.

Moncler

The collection is dominated by knitwear perfect for layering, a down jacket and heavy sweatshirts created in shrunken proportions. The capsule is accomplished with extensive outerwear options and a brief-sleeved T-shirt with silver eyelet. The T-shirt is also available in an extended-sleeved version. The collection includes cream and black shades. The down vest with a hood and a brief cut stands out.

Salix leather boots are characterised by an interesting design. In addition to nodding to punk influences, this footwear option is designed with a Moncler logo on the toe, elastic panels on the front and a rubber sole.

Moncler

“I am incredibly passionate about the outdoors and exploring this wonderful land. I imagine these pieces can easily transition from overnight camping to fashionable evening wear,” Willow added, emphasizing the natural duality of the collection.

Moncler X Willow Smith is currently available in chosen Moncler stores and more moncler.com .

This article was originally published on : www.essence.com

Health and Wellness

Women are less likely to undergo cardiopulmonary resuscitation than men. Training on breast mannequins could be helpful

Published

5 hours ago

November 22, 2024

IAM

If someone’s heart suddenly stops beating, this may increasingly have happened minutes of life. Performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation may increase their probabilities of survival. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation keeps blood pumping, delivering oxygen to the brain and vital organs until specialized treatment arrives.

However, research shows that bystanders are less likely to intervene to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation if the person is a girl. AND latest Australian study analyzed 4,491 cardiac arrest cases between 2017 and 2019 and located that bystanders were more likely to perform CPR on men (74%) than on women (65%).

Could this be partly because CPR training mannequins (so-called dummies) shouldn’t have breasts? Our recent research we checked out mannequins available all over the world to train people to perform CPR and located that 95% of them were flat-chested.

Anatomically, breasts don’t change the cardiopulmonary resuscitation technique. However, they’ll influence whether people try to accomplish that – and hesitation at these key moments could mean the difference between life and death.

Differences in heart health

Cardiovascular diseases – including heart disease, stroke and cardiac arrest – are probably the most common diseases important reason behind death for ladies all over the world.

But if a girl goes into cardiac arrest outside the hospital (meaning her heart stops pumping air properly), that is actually what happens. 10% less likely receive cardiopulmonary resuscitation than a person. Women too less likely survive cardiopulmonary resuscitation and are at greater risk of brain damage following cardiac arrest.

Bystanders are less likely to intervene if a girl needs cardiopulmonary resuscitation compared to a person.
Doublelee/Shutterstock

These are just among the many health inequalities experienced by women, in addition to transgender and non-binary people. Compared to men, their symptoms they are more likely to be rejected or misdiagnosed, or it could take longer to receive a diagnosis.

Reluctance of the witness

There can also be growth evidence women are less likely to start cardiopulmonary resuscitation compared to men.

This may be partly due to the concerns of those being accused of sexual harassmentworry may cause damage (in some cases based on the assumption that ladies are more “fragile”) and discomfort related to touching women’s breasts.

Bystanders may also get into trouble recognition the lady has a cardiac arrest.

Even in simulated scenarios, researchers found that interveners were less likely to remove women’s clothing prepare for resuscitationcompared to men. And there have been women less likely to receive Cardiopulmonary resuscitation or defibrillation (an electrical charge to restart the center) – even when the training was in the shape of a web based game that didn’t require touching anyone.

There is evidence of how people behave in resuscitation training scenarios reflects what they do in real emergency situations. This means it is amazingly vital to train people to recognize cardiac arrest and prepare for intervention, no matter gender or body type.

Attached to men’s bodies

Very Cardiopulmonary resuscitation training resources depict male bodies or don’t specify gender. If bodies shouldn’t have breasts, it’s a male default.

For example, the 12 months 2022 test taking a look at CPR training in North, Central, and South America, it was found that nearly all of available mannequins were white (88%), male (94%), and slim (99%).

The woman's hands press the torso of a mannequin wearing a blue jacket. — It is amazingly rare for a mannequin to have breasts or a bigger body.
M Isolation photo/Shutterstock

This research reflects what we see in our work once we train other healthcare professionals to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation. We noticed that every one the mannequins available for training are flat chested. One of us (Rebecca) had difficulty finding training mannequins with breasts.

Single mannequin with breasts

Our recent research we checked what cardiopulmonary resuscitation mannequins are available and the way diverse they are. In 2023, we identified 20 cardiopulmonary resuscitation mannequins in the worldwide market. Mannequins are often torsos with no head and without arms.

Of the 20 available, five (25%) were sold as “female”, but only considered one of them had breasts. This implies that 95% of obtainable CPR training mannequins were flat-chested.

We also checked out other diversity characteristics, including skin tone and bigger bodies. We found that 65% had more than one skin tone available, but just one had a bigger body. Further research is required on the impact of those elements on bystanders when performing CPR.

Breasts don’t change cardiopulmonary resuscitation technique

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation technique doesn’t change when someone has breasts. The barriers are cultural. And although you could feel uncomfortable, starting cardiopulmonary resuscitation as soon as possible can save your life.

Signs that somebody may have cardiopulmonary resuscitation include not respiration properly or completely or not responding to you.

Perform effective cardiopulmonary resuscitationit’s best to:

place the heel of your hand in the middle of your chest
place your second hand on top of the primary and interlace your fingers (keep your arms straight)
press firmly to a depth of about 5 cm before releasing
press your chest with a frequency of 100-120 beats per minute (you may sing a song) in your head to show you how to keep time!)

An example of performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation – using a flat-chest manikin.

What a couple of defibrillator?

You haven’t got to remove someone’s bra to perform CPR. But you could need to accomplish that if a defibrillator is required.

AND defibrillator is a tool that uses an electrical charge to restart the center. An underwired bra may cause minor skin burns when the debrillator pads apply an electrical charge. However, in case you cannot take your bra off, don’t let it delay your care.

What should change?

Our research highlights the necessity for a big selection of breast CPR training mannequins, in addition to a wide range of body sizes.

Training resources need to higher prepare people to intervene and perform CPR on individuals with breasts. We also need greater education on the chance of developing and dying from heart disease in women.

This article was originally published on : theconversation.com

Health and Wellness

Ant stings can be painful. Here’s how to avoid getting stung this summer (and what to do if it happens)

Published

12 hours ago

November 22, 2024

IAM

The starting of summer is just a couple of days away, and plenty of of us will be looking forward to long, sunny days spent on the beach, by the pool, camping or having a picnic within the park.

Insects love summer too. Most of them right then grow and feed. However, this shared appreciation of the season can sometimes lead to conflict.

Insects have long been preyed upon by many species, including birds, mammals, amphibians, and other insects. Accordingly, quite a lot of defense mechanisms have evolved – perhaps none more familiar to humans than the sting.

Many ants have a stinger on their rear end which they use to deliver venom. It will not be the sting itself that causes pain, but relatively venom. Ant venom accommodates a mix of various chemicals, a few of which have evolved specifically to manipulate the nerve endings in our skin to cause pain.

Let’s take a have a look at the several ant stings chances are you’ll experience this summer in Australia and how to respond.

Bull ants

Bull ants (also often called bulldog ants, jumper ants, or jumper ants) are large for an ant. Some species can grow to length 4 centimeters. They are easily identified by their large eyes, long mandibles (jaws), and aggressive nature.

Their sting is immediate, hot, sharp and unambiguous, similar to that of a honey bee. The intense pain will only last a couple of minutes before being replaced by redness and swelling across the sting site.

There are many differing kinds of bull ants in Australia.
Sam Robinson

Green-headed ants

Green-headed ants are also called green ants (but not to be confused with green ants). green tree ants northern Australia, which do not sting). Green-headed ants are common and love our lawns.

About Length 6 millimetersthey’re much smaller than bull ants. They can be recognized by their shiny green-purple exoskeleton.

Green-headed ants are frequently less aggressive than bull ants, but they can still deliver a big sting. The pain from a green ant sting can construct up step by step and cause intense, sticky pain.

Fire ants

Fire ants (or imported red fire ants) are native to South America. They were detected first in Brisbane in 2001it probably moved in containers and has since spread across south-east Queensland.

Fire ants are reddish brown and black and range in size from Length 2–6 millimeters.

You will almost certainly encounter fire ants of their nests, which appear like a pile of loose dirt. A hearth ant nest has no obvious entrance, which is way to distinguish it from other similar ant nests.

Disturbing a hearth ant nest will awaken an offended mass of a whole bunch of ants and expose you to being stung.

The initial pain from a single sting seems like an intense, hot itch, although it can be controlled. However, fire ant stings rarely occur in the only digits. One ant can sting multiple times, and plenty of ants can sting one person, which can lead to a whole bunch of stings. A hearth ant sting can cause pus-filled ulcers and scarring in the next days.

If you reside in an area where fire ants are present, it’s price taking a couple of minutes to learn how to do this recognize and report their.

Electric ants

Electric ants is one other nasty random import, coming from Central and South America. Currently limited to Cairns and surroundingsthese are tiny (1.5 millimeters long) yellow ants.

Like fire ants, these ants are frequently defensive, so lots of them will sting without delay. Their sting is more painful than you’ll expect from such a tiny creature. I compare it to being showered with red, hot sparks.

If you think that you see electric ants, please report it Biosecurity in Queensland.

Australian ants should not the worst

You may be surprised to hear that Australian ants don’t even make it to the rostrum when it comes to essentially the most painful ant stings. The winners include: harvester ants (North and South America), which cause severe, sticky pain, comparable to a drill slowly rotating in a muscle – for up to 12 hours.

The gold medal goes to the sting of the South and Central American bullet ant, which has been described How:

Pure, intense, sensible pain. It’s like walking on burning charcoal with a 3-inch nail stuck in your heel.

How to avoid getting stung (and what to do if you do)

Fortunately, the answer is frequently quite simple. Look around before you sit on the bottom or unfolded a picnic blanket, avoiding places where you see ant nests or a lot of foraging ants.

The selection of footwear might also be necessary. In my experience, most stings occur on the feet of those wearing thongs.

If you get stung, generally the situation will improve by itself. The pain often subsides after a couple of minutes (sometimes slightly longer within the case of a green ant sting). The redness, swelling and itching that sometimes follows may last for several days.

In the meantime, if mandatory, ice pack it will help with the pain. If it’s particularly bad, a topical numbing cream containing lidocaine may provide temporary relief. You can get it over-the-counter at a pharmacy.

A small proportion of individuals may experience an allergic response to ant stings. In very severe cases this may include respiratory problems or ingestion. If you or a loved one experiences these symptoms after an ant sting, you need to seek urgent medical attention.

This article was originally published on : theconversation.com