Addressing Structural Racism

This moment in history, the Black Lives Matter movement and racial health inequities exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic have been a catalyst for confronting structural racism. Our role as healthcare professionals has been challenging to navigate during this period of societal shift and stress. However, as healthcare professionals, we have a duty to serve our patients and to improve healthcare outcomes by confronting health inequities. The objectives of this chapter are to provide a foundation for defining racism concepts, to provide historical perspectives on structural racism and its ongoing impacts, to address the role of structural racism in healthcare inequities, to provide tools for dismantling structural racism, and to explore health issues that may disproportionately affect communities.