Key Data on Health and Health Care by Race and Ethnicity | KFF (2024)

FAQs

How do race and ethnicity affect health care? ›

Quality and Use of Health Care Services

Racial and ethnic disparities in quality of care and use of services have been extensively documented. Across and within most states, white people overall receive better quality of care than Black, Hispanic, AIAN, and, often, AANHPI people.

Health care organizations should collect information on patients' race and ethnicity in order to measure disparities in care—-and see if they exist in the organization.

Bias, stereotyping, prejudice, and clinical uncertainty on the part of healthcare providers may contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare.

The Institute of Medicine defines disparities as “racial or ethnic differences in the quality of health care that are not due to access-related factors or clinical needs, preferences, and appropriateness of intervention.” Racial and ethnic minorities tend to receive poorer quality care compared with nonminorities, even ...

In the case of racial disparities in medical care, other potential explanations include the geographic maldistribution of medical resources, racial differences in patient preferences, pathophysiology, economic status, insurance coverage, as well as in trust, knowledge, and familiarity with medical procedures (Horner, ...

Promoting diversity in health care is critical because it offers several patient benefits. These advantages include a reduction in care disparities, improved and optimized care delivery, and improved access to care.

Racism, discrimination, and violence. Education, job opportunities, and income. Access to nutritious foods and physical activity opportunities.

Many factors contribute to health disparities, including genetics, access to care, poor quality of care, community features (e.g., inadequate access to healthy foods, poverty, limited personal support systems and violence), environmental conditions (e.g., poor air quality), language barriers and health behaviors.

Blacks and sometimes other minorities are less likely to receive a diverse range of procedures, ranging from high-technology interventions to basic diagnostic and treatment procedures, and they experience poorer quality medical care than whites.

How to reduce racial disparities in health care? ›

Increase awareness of racial and ethnic disparities in health care among the general public. Strengthen patient-provider relationships in publicly funded health plans. Apply the same managed care protections to publicly funded HMO participants that apply to private HMO participants.

There is ample evidence that social factors, including education, employment status, income level, gender and ethnicity have a marked influence on how healthy a person is.

Reduced Misunderstandings and Medical Errors: Cultural misunderstandings can lead to misdiagnoses, inappropriate treatments, or non-adherence to medical advice. By promoting cultural diversity and understanding, healthcare institutions can reduce these risks, ensuring patients receive the care they need.

Increase awareness of racial and ethnic disparities in health care among the general public. Strengthen patient-provider relationships in publicly funded health plans. Apply the same managed care protections to publicly funded HMO participants that apply to private HMO participants.

Another one of the few communication studies to address directly the issue of ethnicity found that physicians demonstrated better questioning and facilitating skills and more empathy skills when with Anglo-American as compared to Spanish-American patients (Hooper et al., 1982).

Exploring Four Barriers Experienced by African Americans in Healthcare: Perceived Discrimination, Medical Mistrust, Race Discordance, and Poor Communication.