“It’s important for adolescents to see people of color treating them—not only for the fact that they look like them, but for the authenticity of the care they are receiving,” Ms. Brown says.
Having a shared racial or ethnic background also can help when inviting patients to take part in research. This is sometimes a challenge due to egregious research that involved persons of color in the past. “That’s another place where that trust can come into play,” Dr. Wright says.
Vanessa Caceres is a medical writer in Bradenton, Fla.
References
