Dear , Years ago, when my twin sons were young, we attended a church service with a pastor who happened to be a woman. One time, later when they were five or six, we visited another church with a male pastor. My sons turned to me and said, “I didn’t know men could be pastors.” They had unconscious bias, based on their limited experience. This week, Virginia’s top health official, Dr. Colin Greene, rejected the widely recognized and thoroughly documented scientific evidence that there is racism and unconscious bias in our health care systems that result in death and injuries to African Americans and people of color. He also claimed that gun violence was not a public health crisis, but rather a political talking point. The more Dr. Greene tried to explain himself, the more of a mess he created. The Virginia Interfaith Center signed onto a statement (CLICK HERE to read) developed by the Healthcare for All Virginians (HAV) Coalition, of which we are a part, denouncing Dr. Greene’s comments. We were heartened, however, by Governor Youngkin’s words expressing outrage at the gap in Black and white maternal death and pledging to address the problems, as reported by the Richmond Times Dispatch. (Click here to read them.)
I couldn’t help but remember the early crisis in Governor Northam’s Administration when his yearbook revealed a photo of someone, possibly him, in blackface. Despite calls for his resignation, Governor Northam used the opportunity to learn more about racism and his own unconscious bias. This current crisis for the Youngkin Administration is an opportunity for the Governor and his leadership team to learn more about racism and unconscious bias. It is deeply concerning that the person setting the priorities for Virginia’s Department of Health refuses to accept the scientific evidence linking racism and unconscious bias to wildly disparate health outcomes, particularly in preventable deaths of Black mothers and infants regardless of socioeconomic status and education. We all have unconscious bias, but its verified life-or-death impact within health care settings can be mitigated with a commitment to continued training. Training certainly can’t hurt, but it has been shown to help in California and Michigan to increase sensitivities and competencies in care and communications during patient interactions and improve health outcomes for people of color. VICPP is proposing that unconscious bias become a regular part of the training required in Virginia for licensing of all health care professionals who come in direct contact with patients. Please email the Governor's Press Secretary to thank the Governor him for expressing his outrage at the Black and white health gaps, and urging him to support unconscious bias training for all health professionals, including his State Health Commissioner. CLICK HERE to thank the Governor for his comments and urge support for unconscious bias training. Fighting my own unconscious bias,
Kim Bobo
Executive Director
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