Dr. Teni Brown is working to transform women’s healthcare from within the medical establishment. As a urogynecologist and reconstructive pelvic surgeon, she specializes in treating conditions that many women find difficult to discuss, including pelvic organ prolapse and incontinence. But beyond her surgical expertise, Dr. Brown has made it her mission to address the systemic disparities that Black women face when seeking reproductive and gynecological care.
Operating from Chicago, Dr. Brown centers Black women in both her research and clinical practice, believing that when care is elevated to serve the most marginalized communities, it improves outcomes for all patients. Her approach tackles not just individual health issues, but the broader systemic factors that contribute to healthcare inequities.
Dr. Brown discusses her specialized field, her approach to addressing healthcare disparities and her advice for young Black women entering medicine.
Could you tell us what you do as a urogynecologist?
I’m a urogynecologist or reconstructive pelvic surgeon. That means that I take care of all the embarrassing female issues like peeing on yourself or your vagina falling out.
In your surgical practice, how do you address the systemic disparities Black women are facing when seeking reproductive gynecological care?
The first thing is to be aware of the context. I center Black women in the research that I do, but also in the way that I deliver care, because I think that when you elevate your care, to make sure that it is appropriate and it serves the folks that are in [need], it’s actually better for everybody.
I think about this and how systemic racism impacts the reproductive care of women, particularly pelvic floor care … [I think,] what are the policies that are in place that impact the differential insurance coverage, for example, that may determine the type of medication somebody may get? Or the social determinants of health that are in place that may impact whether or not you seek care, or if you’re able to continuously follow up with care?
And more importantly, meet folks [where] they are, take that time to really think about how it’s the system and not the individual that may be producing the differences or the patterns of [disparities] that you may be observing.
What advice do you give young Black women entering the medical field who want to change the system from within?
You have to be here. You’re supposed to be here. I would say take up space. Your perspectives are invaluable.
I think that in medicine, where the dominance, ideologies and narratives are for certain groups, our voices, our perspectives, our presence are everything to our communities and to the patients that look like us. I would say keep it pushing. Make sure you get in there because we want to be in every seat at the table because that’s how we change outcomes for our community.
