Despite happening nearly a hundred years ago, the nation is still seeing the impacts of redlining and other forms of systemic racism, with recent data showing that redlining has resulted in present-day limits on patient access to mental healthcare.
“While it may seem hard to understand how structurally racist redlining policies that were implemented nearly 100 years ago would impact access to care today, this initial analysis suggests that could be the case,” Clese Erikson, Principal Investigator at the Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity at The George Washington University, stated publicly.
These findings come as the healthcare industry continues to focus on health equity and acknowledge the role that historical systemic racism, like redlining, has played in current disparities.
This could impact patient access to mental healthcare for individuals living in previously redlined districts, who to this day tend to be Black or people of color.
The researchers acknowledged that simply working off the listed mailing address is not always reflective of a mental healthcare provider’s practice area. However, the findings warrant further investigation into access to mental healthcare providers and how other social determinants of health, like transportation, compound to limit access.
Read more at PatientEngagementHit.com.
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