Whose Body Matters? Representations of Race and Skin Colour in Medical Textbooks

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Abstract

The medical discrimination hypothesis states that medical personnel treat patients differently based on the non-symptomatic characteristics of the patient. In this study, we extend work on discrimination by analyzing the representation of race in 3109 images provided in four widely used textbooks used to teach anatomy in American and Canadian medical schools. We find that the predominant body and patient skin colour represented in these books is White, light-skinned and male. We also find that in the images that depict a doctor-patient interaction, the doctors are predominantly White men or Black women and the patients are predominately White. The results from this study provide evidence about one of the potential pathways through which inequities in patient experience with the health care system could be occurring.

Authors

• Patricia Louie, University of Toronto

• Rima Wilkes