Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Global Open (Sep 2020)

How to Embrace Antiracism as a US Plastic Surgeon: Definitions, Principles, and Practice

  • Perry S. Bradford, MD,
  • Brent R. DeGeorge, Jr., MD, PhD,
  • Steven H. Williams, MD,
  • Paris D. Butler, MD, MPH

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1097/GOX.0000000000003185
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 8, no. 9
p. e3185

Abstract

Read online

Summary:. The United States’s overdue awakening on systemic and structural racism has triggered global dialogue regarding racial inequities. Historically, discrimination and practitioner bias have resulted in poorer health and health outcomes in minority communities. To address racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare, it is imperative that plastic surgeons, trainees, and staff understand definitions to create a socially conscious environment in the workplace. We explore various measures that can be implemented to develop antiracist practices in the field of plastic surgery and ultimately to provide a foundation to improve diversity within our discipline and beyond.