Diversity, inclusion and racial disparities
Irene Blanco, MD, MS
Northwestern University
Chicago, IL, United States
Disclosure(s): UCB: Advisor or Review Panel Member (Ongoing), Consultant (Ongoing)
Candace Feldman, MD, MPH, ScD
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, MA, United States
Disclosure(s): BMS Foundation: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing); Curio Bioscience: My husband is one of the founders and will receive equity (but has not received anything to date). (Ongoing); OM1, Inc.: Consultant (Ongoing); Pfizer: Grant/Research Support (Ongoing)
Alvin Wells, MD, PhD, FACR
Director
Aurora Rheumatology and Immunotherapy Center
Franklin, WI, United States
Disclosure(s): AbbVie: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); Alexion: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); Ani: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); AstraZeneca: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); Aurinia: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); Boehringer Ingelheim: Consultant (Ongoing); Eli Lilly & Company: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); GSK: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); Idorsia: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); Mallinckrodt: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing); Pfizer: Consultant (Ongoing); Sanofi: Speaker/Honoraria (includes speakers bureau, symposia, and expert witness) (Ongoing)
Many rheumatic diseases disproportionately impact people of color, producing greater disease burden, lower quality of life, and lower life expectancy compared to White non-Hispanic patients with similar diagnoses. The mechanisms for these health disparities are myriad, including differential access to care and other social determinants of health, variable genetic and environmental risk, and implicit bias and systemic racism. However, there are ways to improve health equity in your practice. Health disparities are prevalent in medicine and rheumatology is not exempt. Strides have been made to close this gap, but this session proposes to take a closer look at the specific barriers that stand in the way, their impact, and strategic solutions to further narrow this gap in 2023.
Speaker: Candace Feldman, MD, MPH, ScD – Brigham and Women's Hospital
Speaker: Irene Blanco, MD, MS – Northwestern University
Speaker: Alvin Wells, MD, PhD, FACR – Aurora Rheumatology and Immunotherapy Center
