WEBVTT

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- Listen!

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Doctors are ignoring women's pain

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due to gender bias,

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which we know disproportionately

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affects Black women.

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And this behavior needs to be called out.

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Earlier this week,

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The Washington Post published an expose

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revealing that women are more likely

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to have their pain either misdiagnosed

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or completely dismissed

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by medical professionals.

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The publication also provided

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alarming data to back up these claims,

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including a report that women

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who experience chest pain waited

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29% longer than men in emergency rooms

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to be evaluated for a
possible heart attack.

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Another study showed

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that middle-aged women

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experiencing chest pain

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and other symptoms of heart disease

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are twice as likely to be deemed

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mentally ill than men

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who displayed those same symptoms.

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This reality trickles down

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to women's reproductive health as well,

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as doctors are more likely

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to ignore complaints of pain

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during childbirth and IUD insertion

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as well as women suffering
from endometriosis.

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The viral TikTok that recently led

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to four nurses from Georgia

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being fired showed

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just how pervasive this bias truly is.

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This is especially jarring

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since Black women are three times

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more likely to die

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from pregnancy-related causes.

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And as we've seen from the childbirth

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stories of superstars ranging

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from Serena Williams to Beyonce,

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nothing can shield us from that statistic.

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A 2016 study showed that

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half of White medical
students and residents

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were more likely to ignore

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the pain of Black patients

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due to their beliefs around

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the biological differences

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between Black people and White people.

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Though these practices
won't change overnight,

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women should seek out
new healthcare providers

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if they feel like their medical concerns

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aren't being taken seriously.

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We also need to speak out

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and amplify our mistreatment

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so our voices can actually be heard.

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For more information on
medical discrimination

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against Black women,

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visit theroot.com.