In 1940, decades before the medical schools in the United States were desegregated, less than three percent of the nation’s doctors were Black. Today, although Black people make up more of a share of the national population, the percentage of Black doctors in the country has grown only slightly to 5.8%. Black nurses face a similar crisis of representation, constituting only 7.8% of nurses. During the pandemic, Black healthcare workers in the United States, carried the weight of a centuries of medical discrimination, professional gatekeeping, and unequal care and resources.
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Despite the end of National Emergency status for COVID-19, the pandemic and its associated harms continue to reverberate across the country. Black doctors and nurses continue to labor at the intersection of care and activism, working to deliver vital care to their patients while fighting against systemic barriers against Black health and wellbeing. In these stories, you hear the voices of these healthcare workers, gaining reflective insight into their experiences on the frontlines throughout the pandemic.
To protect their identities, each narrator was given a pseudonym. This protection is crucial to ensure each narrator can share the full truth of their lived experience. It is also crucial due to the repercussions that Black healthcare workers face when they speak up about experiencing issues of discrimination. Each narrator is also listed with their medical specialty. To listen to a story, click on a narrator’s name.
Abigail
Doctor - Family Medicine
Adanne
Doctor - Neurosurgeon
Adelola
Doctor - Emergency Room
Adriana
Doctor - Psychiatrist
Ava
Doctor - Internal Medicine
Barbara
Doctor - Emergency Room
Celestine
Doctor - Nephrology
Charlton
Doctor - Emergency Room
Cheryl
Doctor - Internal Medicine
Chigozie
Doctor - General Medicine
Christine
Doctor - Emergency Room
Clifford
Doctor - Emergency Room
Cynthia
Doctor - Anesthesiologist
Danai
Doctor - Infectious Disease
Darius
Doctor - Infectious Disease
Dianne
Doctor - OBGYN
Edward
Doctor - Emergency Room
Ejo
Doctor - Gastroenterologist
Haniah
Doctor - Pediatrics
Heather
Doctor - Emergency Room
Ifechi
Doctor - Emergency Room
Jaqueline
Doctor - OBGYN
Jerry
Doctor - Forensic Pathologist
Jessica
Doctor - Internal Medicine
Joy
Doctor - Medical Oncologist
June
Doctor - Pediatrics
Kristie
Doctor - Psychiatrist
LaToya
Doctor - Immersed Medicine
Lori
Doctor - Surgeon
Lynn
Doctor - Gastroenterologist
Marie
Doctor - Primary Care
Mary Ann
Doctor - OBGYN
Maurice
Doctor - Internal Medicine
Melissa
Doctor - OBGYN
Monique
Doctor - Pediatrics
Phillipe
Doctor - Infectious Disease
Renee
Doctor - Family Medicine
Robin
Doctor - Occupational Medicine
Sean
Doctor - Emergency Room
Seth
Doctor - Family Medicine
Shayla
Doctor - Psychiatrist
Susan
Doctor - OBGYN
Tameka
Doctor - Orthopedic Surgeon
Thomas
Doctor - Psychiatrist
Tonya
Doctor - Meternal/Fetal Medicine
Vanessa
Doctor - Pediatrics
Victoria
Doctor - OBGYN
Whitney
Doctor - NA
Yolanda
Doctor - Family Medicine
Yvonne
Doctor - Emergency Room
Ashley
Nurse - Labor and Delivery
Asia
Nurse - Pediatrics
Carmen
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Cassandra
Nurse - General Medicine
Christina
Nurse - Registered Nurse
Courtney
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Crystal
Nurse - General Medicine
Deborah
Nurse - Administration
Desiree
Nurse - Labor and Delivery
Dominique
Nurse - Nurse Educator
Eugene
Nurse - Internal Medicine
Femi
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Gwendolyn
Nurse - General Medicine
Heidi
Nurse - Pediatrics
Iretioluwa
Nurse - Registered Nurse
Jade
Nurse - Pediatrics
Janet
Nurse - General Medicine
Joanne
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Jocelyn
Nurse - Registered Nurse
Jonelle
Nurse - Registered Nurse
Kelendra
Nurse - General Medicine
Kendall
Nurse - Emergency Room
Kimberly
Nurse - Registered Nurse
Laneeka
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Lasyah
Nurse - General Medicine
Loretta
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Luevella
Nurse - Administration
Mariah
Nurse - General Medicine
Mariana
Nurse - Burn Unit/Trauma
Mariana
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Marissa
Nurse - Labor and Delivery
Miriam
Nurse - Entreprenur
Monique
Nurse - Pediatrics
Naomi
Nurse - Registered Nurse
Pauline
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Phoebe
Nurse - Registered Nurse
Samantha
Nurse - General Medicine
Sarah
Nurse - Pediatrics
Sean
Nurse - Emergency Room
Serena
Nurse - Emergency Room
Shannae
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Shawna
Nurse - Internal Medicine
Stephany
Nurse - Intensive Care Unit
Stephen
Nurse - General Medicine
Tanya
Nurse - Registered Nurse
Tara
Nurse - Internal Medicine
Theresa
Nurse - Administration
Toya
Nurse - Pediatrics
Tunkina
Nurse - Pediatrics
William
Nurse - General Medicine