The Power of Embracing Change and Moving Forward

I’ve worked in the healthcare industry for 30 years, and I’m certain that people in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries want to help improve health equity in the US. The challenge is they lack a clear path forward. I founded Social Health Research to provide healthcare-focused companies with a vision and community-led strategies for bridging healthcare delivery gaps.

We can’t wait any longer. At Social Health Research, we believe it’s time for a national reckoning. While more than one million Americans died during the Covid-19 pandemic, the virus disproportionately impacted low-income communities of color, resulting in higher infection rates, hospital stays, and deaths. Covid-19 capitalized on the harsh realities of the social, economic, and racial injustices that have long existed in the US. Low-income people of color are more likely to be poor, work jobs that increase exposure to the virus and other diseases, live in crowded conditions, have chronic health conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, and heart disease, and have difficulty getting health care when needed.

Many of the obstacles low-income, under-resourced communities face are due to decades of structural racism and unfair economic policies. The medical industry, in particular, has also had a long history of mistreating minority patients. Take the infamous Tuskegee syphilis study, where researchers withheld treatment from hundreds of Black men for decades so they could study the progression of the disease. More recently, studies point to racial biases in pain management among some healthcare providers. It’s no wonder that when the government began offering free Covid-19 vaccines to prevent the virus from sickening and killing people, polls showed only around 40% of African Americans said they’d be willing to get the shot.

So how do we overcome systemic deficits in under-resourced, low-income communities that led to devastating health disparities during the Covid-19 pandemic? By educating the public, healthcare providers, and healthcare-focused industries about the impact social determinants of health have on people’s lives and by helping communities define what their needs are and how to overcome them.

The goal of increasing health equity in the US is a marathon, not a sprint. The problems are complex and challenging, but overcoming them is vital to helping underserved communities protect themselves from the next pandemic and costly preventable chronic diseases. Encouraging all Americans to participate in clinical trials involving the future of medicine, precision treatments targeting specific genes, is also essential.

AT SHR, we work side-by-side with community champions and stakeholders to define and break down barriers people face seeing a healthcare provider, getting preventive screening tests, a timely diagnosis and appropriate treatment and follow-up. Our community-led engagement strategies help communities and companies work together to define and bridge healthcare delivery gaps and rebuild public trust. Contact us, and let’s get to work.

-Joe Luzi - Founder, CEO SHR