Discrimination and Medical Mistrust in a Racially and Ethnically Diverse Sample of California Adults

The Article in Brief

Discrimination and Medical Mistrust in a Racially and Ethnically Diverse Sample of California Adults

Mohsen Bazargan , and colleagues

Background Medical mistrust is a major barrier to a strong patient-clinician relationship. For racial/ethnic minorities, medical mistrust may be rooted in patients' past experience of discrimination. Understanding the mechanisms of these racial differences may lead to better optimization of therapeutic effectiveness and decreased patient mistrust.

What This Study Found Researchers at the Charles R. Drew University in Los Angeles analyzed data from more than 2,300 White, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic Black adults who asked to report on perceived discrimination due to race, ethnicity, language, income, and insurance status or type. Black and Hispanic adults reported higher rates of discrimination across the board, including income and insurance-based discrimination. Black and Hispanic adults reported higher rates of discrimination, including income and insurance-based discrimination. In addition, 20% and 10% of Black and Latino adults stated that they could not get health care services they needed because of racial/ethnic or language discrimination, respectively. The analysis also found a link between having a consistent primary care physician and overall medical trust. Adults who did not have a usual source of primary care were much more likely to report mistrust of health care providers.

Implications

• The research team discusses the link between medical mistrust, racial and ethnic discrimination in health care, and roots in institutionalized racism, declaring that, "resolving mistrust requires addressing systemic bias and prejudice in the medical system," echoing recent sentiments expressed by the American Medical Association.