Chief Medical Officer, AmeriChoice United Healthgroup
As
health care officials, political pundits, and presidential hopefuls
discuss the health care problem in this country, one particular aspect
of the current state of health care is being given very little
attention: the health care disparity for minorities. Dr. Denise
Christian, chief medical officer for AmeriChoice United Healthgroup, is
working to make sure the public recognizes the seriousness of a problem
which must be immediately addressed. “We know that blacks, Hispanics
and those that are poor have a lower level of care that they receive
from the health care system,” she explains. “We must address this by
first of all, letting everyone know that this situation exists.
Education is key [and] each of these groups needs to sound out about
the health disparity situation.”
Dr. Christian encourages her colleagues to be honest about the health
care crisis, so that everyone can work to erase the discrepancy.
“Health care professionals must respond by acknowledging [that] there
are components of race, economics and poverty that are breeding health
care disparity situations in this country,” explains Dr. Christian of
her efforts to promote community awareness. “We know that cancer
deaths, mortality, heart disease and stroke are increasingly problems
in our communities.”
“We must respond with a message of wellness, prevention [and] access,”
she says. “[That means] getting to your doctor, getting care and
acknowledging your rights as a patient to demand the care that you need
from your doctor.”
Hopefully, if everyone takes an active role, we can begin to shift this sad reality.
–todd williams
