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Discrimination in health care has become an increasingly problematic issue between doctors and their patients. Medical bias can present in numerous ways, including how providers communicate, what they do to address patient symptoms and how doctors describe patient interactions. Research has found that bias can often lead to substandard care.
Researchers are increasingly finding that doctors can transmit prejudice under the guise of objective descriptions.
David Confer, a bicyclist and an audio technician, told his doctor he "used to be Ph.D. level" during a 2019 appointment in Washington, D.C. Confer, then 50, was speaking figuratively: He was experiencing brain fog — a symptom of his liver problems. But did his doctor take him seriously? Now, after his death, Confer's partner, Cate Cohen, doesn't think so.
Medical records can contain seemingly objective descriptions that are actually full of coded language and subtext. How does that affect care?