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LEAD the WAY IN DIVERSIFYING PHYSICIAN WORKFORCE TO IMPROVE HEALTH OUTCOMES
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A R I ZO N A P H Y S I C I A N M A G A Z I N E
r. Kenneth Poole of Mayo Clinic Arizona says ideally, the race or ethnicity of a physician should not impact patient care. But Poole, an internal-medicine physician who oversees patient experience at Mayo Clinic Arizona and serves on the admissions committee for Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, says that available data shows people tend to prefer racially and culturally congruent care—and that such care can impact outcomes. For instance, Black men have poor health outcomes compared to white men and a lower life expectancy. Poole points to data showing that the only proven way to date to narrow that health gap is for Black male patients to see Black male physicians, as Black men are more likely to engage in preventative services recommended by Black physicians.
