Rasing the ivory tower: the production of knowledge and distrust of medicine among African Americans

Abstract

African American distrust of medicine has consequences for treatment seeking and healthcare behaviour. Much work has been done to examine acute events (eg, Tuskegee Syphilis Study) that have contributed to this phenomenon and a sophisticated bioethics discipline keeps watch on current practices by medicine. But physicians and clinicians are not the only actors in the medical arena, particularly when it comes to health beliefs and distrust of medicine. The purpose of this paper is to call attention not just to ethical shortcomings of the past, but to the structural contexts of those events and the contributions and responsibilities of popular media and academic disciplines in the production of (often mythic) knowledge. We argue that ignoring context and producing inaccurate work has real impacts on health and healthcare, particularly for African Americans, and thus engenders ethical obligations incumbent on disciplines traditionally recognised as purely academic.

The Role of Culture in the Context of School-Based BMI Screening

“…This has led some people to feel confused and skeptical about how to integrate research findings that may affect health care decisions. 98 This confusion may lead to added distrust among communities that may feel marginalized or are linguistically isolated, 99 which highlights the importance of crafting messages that engender trust by recognizing and responding to culturally based beliefs and attitudes.…”

Guinea Pig Kids: Myths or Modern Tuskegees?

“…African American community leaders and churchgoers in one study were equally likely to believe in conspiracy theories (Simmons and Parsons 2005). Popular media contributes to this distrust through the production of mythic ''knowledge'' about African Americans and medicine (Wasserman, Flannery, and Clair 2007).…”

Black Megachurch Websites: An Assessment of Health Content for Congregations and Communities

“…These persistent and multiple health disadvantages continue as a result of a variety of factors including racial segregation, discrimination, and institutional racism (Barnes, 2010;Williams & Mohammed, 2009;Williams & Sternthal, 2010). Furthermore, egregious injustices such as the Tuskegee Syphilis Study created a collective distrust of medicine and public health among African Americans (Thomas & Quinn, 1991;Wasserman, Flannery, & Clair, 2007). Such shared experiences of oppression led to the formation of a unique community identity that influences health beliefs and behavior.…”