Harriet Washington
First year students Chelsea Dorsey and Nereida Esparza recently spoke with noted medical journalist, Harriet Washington to discuss her latest book.
By Chelsea Dorsey, MS 1 and Nereida Esparza, MS 1
Nereida Esparza, MS 1, Harriet Washington, and Chelsea Dorsey, MS 1
This past May, Harriet Washington, a medical journalist, editor and bioethicist, spoke at the Department of Medicine’s Grand Rounds. Washington’s work focuses on bioethics, health disparities, the history of medicine, African American health issues, and the intersection of medicine, ethics, and culture. The recipient of some of the most prestigious national awards in journalism, Washington has also served as a fellow at Harvard Medical School, the Harvard School of Public Health, and as a senior research scholar at the National Center for Bioethics at Tuskegee University.
Her most recent book, Medical Apartheid: The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black Americans From Colonial Times to the Present, is a thorough account of the mistreatment of African Americans in medical experimentation from the mid 18th century to the present. The Public Health Service Syphilis Study, which took place from 1932–1972 in Tuskegee, Alabama, is probably the most notorious of such atrocities, but is unfortunately only the tip of the iceberg. Washington’s book is the first of its kind, as it puts forth a comprehensive description of how African Americans have been abused and exploited throughout the history of medicine in the United States. Although the medical community has primarily acted in the public’s best interests, Medical Apartheid is a necessary reminder that for many there is a warranted mistrust of the medical field. In Washington’s eyes, this book is a necessary cathartic step towards moving beyond past events and empowering African Americans to enter clinical trials—something that is most certainly needed as we combat current and longstanding health care disparities.
Although this book is beneficial for a number of audiences, one of the groups Washington wishes to target is that of the health care provider. When asked if she thought low-income, minority patients were disrespected or received inferior care in academic medical centers, she responded that she does not believe care for minorities, in most circumstances, is inferior. Her biggest concern, however, is the treatment of these populations as “clinical material.”
She worries that most medical students first interact with minority populations in a learning environment that places the patient in an exposed and vulnerable position. She fears that these types of interactions only reinforce stereotypes, as students try to adapt each encounter to a specific case they’ve seen before. She emphasized this point by sharing with us a moment in which she herself was mistreated. During a visit to the emergency room, medical personnel harassed her and accused her of cocaine use, rather than treating the symptoms she described. She recommended that a way to avoid such ungrounded accusations was to constantly remind medical students to always treat the individual in a holistic and respectful manner, never expecting them to fit a “typical” case or scenario.
Washington hopes medical schools will use Medical Apartheid as a “common book.” In other words, as students enter medical school they will receive this book, and read it in its entirety—giving all students in the country a shared reading experience. From reevaluating a patient interaction to structuring clinical trial protocols, Medical Apartheid provides thought-provoking and innovative approaches for the medical community.
