We often think of health as a deeply individual concern, but it impacts communities broadly. For example, the planting of a few trees can help lower summer surface temperatures, provide shade, and improve mental health for the residents of a community. And yet, which trees we plant may simultaneously bring negative health effects, like worsening allergies due to the planting of only male trees.

Let’s take it a step further: When we think about health concerns, we often think of it from the perspective of the person experiencing health care (or the denial of it), but how much do we reflect on the experiences of people in health or health-related professions? Let’s look at some of the trailblazers whose work helped advance health and medicine for all.

Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler

Rebecca Lee Crumpler was the first Black woman to earn a medical degree in the United States. She was also one of the first Black female physician authors. She published “A Book on Medical Discourses in Two Parts” in 1883. The first part focused on infant care, and the second on women’s health. Both sections offered tangible ways to tend to women and children with everyday resources.

Photo of Dr. Rebecca Lee Crumpler

Photo of Dr. Daniel Hale Williams

Dr. Daniel Hale Williams

Daniel Hale Williams was one of the first physicians to perform open-heart surgery in the U.S. He also founded a hospital with an interracial staff. The hospital provided free treatment to patients of various marginalized communities, which made care more accessible to people who were uninsured or under-insured due to preexisting conditions. It was at this hospital that Dr. Williams performed the first documented open-heart surgery, saving the life of a man who had been stabbed by repairing his pericardium. Later, he and the other Black doctors advocated for more medical research on Black populations. For example, they argued that Black women, too, could get cysts on their ovaries like White women, and that they deserved adequate care. He was also the co-founder of The National Medical Association (NMA) the first African American professional medical association in the United States.

A Finger on the Pulse of Health Disparity

Do you enjoy breathing? Yeah, we do too. We do it all the time, in fact. Proper oxygenation of the body is important, and one way we measure oxygen saturation is by using pulse oximeters. These are small devices that clip onto a part of the body—usually the fingertip—and a sensor measures how much light can pass through the finger without getting absorbed by the tissue and blood. One important benefit of this device is that it is non-invasive and quick to use.

Recent research has shown that there are racial disparities for patients of color who are treated using pulse oximeters because the devices have been found to be less accurate on patients with darker skin tones. This resulted in patients of color receiving less supplemental oxygen than White patients did.

Study on racial disparity in pulse oximeter use

Hear a summary…

Click the button below to listen to a 4-minute audio segment from NPR discussing this research (link includes written transcript).

…or read the study.

Click the button below to read the original study.

Game Week

It’s the final week of Black History Month 2023. Each day this week, we will share a game or activity. Today’s game is a word search—click the image below to access it. If you would like a printed copy of today’s game to be mailed to you, e-mail us at AOA.ORE@vermont.gov with your name, address, and the number of copies you would like to receive. We’ll take care of the rest.

Solved? Stumped? Find the answer here: SOLUTION

Pop Quiz!

A one-question trivia check to make sure you’re on your Black History A-game. How many will you get correct throughout the month? Click the button that reads “Today’s pop quiz” to see today’s question.