A few weeks ago I wrote an article about a call for a review of an inherently biased medical assessment of newborn babies, which the NHS Race and Health Observatory found lead to inaccurate assessments and poorer outcomes for diverse communities.

This week in the British Medical Journal there's an opinion article regarding the importance of diversity in medical academia and the discrimination of women, especially black women. I'm struck by how closely linked these issues are but yet the impact of excluding the contribution of women (in particular black women) on patient care isn't mentioned in the BMJ article. The article is fascinating and addresses head-on how serious the situation is, including covering the detrimental impact on innovation, the expansion of knowledge, impairing student performance and so on. But to my mind, it could also damage patient care. If black women aren't represented and nurtured in medical schools, if they're not involved in key studies, if they're not part of the top level of teaching staff in universities, and not part of innovative research into new treatment, then black female patient voices might not be heard and women's health issues might not be seen. The gender and ethnicity data gap prevails. 

There is a plethora of examples of failures in women's care and care of patients from other backgrounds than white British. Take for example vaginal mesh, maternity care and care of babies and children when medics don't listen to parent's concerns. 

As the authors say, discrimination is most pervasive when it is least visible. It could also be most insidious and have the longest lasting impact on patients cared for by medical students for generations to come.

The BMJ article is well worth reading for suggestions on how to address this. The Solicitors Regulation Authority has recently published a similar study. The same issues with diversity and inclusion affect the legal profession. If those teaching law degrees at university and in law schools aren't representative of society, how will lawyers represent and truly understand the clients they serve?

If you have been affected by any of these issues regarding medical, please feel free to contact us to discuss how we may be able to help. We are happy to talk through the issues you're facing without any obligation or charge.