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Patient Perspectives: Defining Health Inequities - And How to Combat Them

Medically reviewed in December 2021

Without proper representation, a void of consequence is created for the patient.

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Transcript

00:00
One of the greatest challenges that I see is representation.
00:09
What do you feel like is the biggest bucket that, if we at the end of this call, could actually come up with solutions, what would it target?
00:16
I do some advocacy work and mentoring with the National Psoriasis Foundation.
00:22
And one of the greatest complaints of a lot of patients is that there is lack of representation
00:30
and understanding, and often misdiagnosis, especially with the skin conditions such as psoriasis,
00:37
where it does look different in black skin versus white skin.
00:44
When I experienced a flare-up that I experienced, it was unlike what I've ever experienced in life. And I was just trying to find anybody,
00:53
anyone that could relate to what I was going through. Because it's very difficult to navigate
01:00
when there's not an understanding, just based off of differences. From a cultural standpoint and from a trust standpoint,
01:07
it's important that we have appropriate representation across various specialties in medicine.
01:15
And when that is lacking, there's automatically sort of a void and a consequence
01:22
that follows that. And so that's one of the biggest barriers,
01:28
is really that lack of representation. And how about you, Afshin? Did you find yourself having to advocate for yourself
01:35
in a space where people didn't necessarily share your same, either culture or understand what you
01:41
were trying to relate what you were going through as a patient? Yeah, definitely. I think even just when I was younger,
01:48
my parents just weren't aware, as immigrants coming in, you don't really have the access to the knowledge.
01:54
So for me it was just lack of health insurance. And that is just something that I'm
02:00
continuing to find as a hurdle. Because you have to work full-time in order to get health insurance.
02:07
But with your diseases, you often can't work full-time. And that, to me has become the biggest hurdle,
02:14
especially in the last two years with COVID. Being on immunosuppressive medications, I'm not safe going back out in person.

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