Dr. Camara Jones, past-President of the APHA, identified three steps to move beyond public health declarations into actions that actually address racism. The steps Dr. Jones suggests are to: 1. name racism, 2. identify the mechanisms by which racism operates, and 3. build strategy and take action. Part 1 of this series focuses on the first...
On September 14th, St. Vincent Charity Medical Center announced they will cease to provide emergency and inpatient services, including emergency psychiatric services, in Cleveland. In addition to the impact this will have on the local service delivery landscape, there is also the economic consequences of the loss of 600 jobs in the city’s Center. Ironically,...
“Why does everything have to be about race?” “I’m tired of talking about race.” “I don’t see color.” “You’re playing the race card.” Have you heard these phrases? Perhaps you have said these phrases. Such sentiments, however, are not new. James Baldwin’s interview with Paul Weiss from 1967 describes institutional outcomes Acclaimed civil rights...
I was expecting the flashing light and siren behind me as soon as I passed the police car. I had an anxious feeling that he would be coming after me. I was passing through a small town in Ohio, a state I have lived my entire life, and I did not see a lot of...
Since 2020, many municipalities across Northeast Ohio either declared racism as a public health crisis or condemned racism. According to an article from The Land, 10 towns and cities across Cuyahoga County declared racism as a public health crisis (RAPHC) and six cities passed resolutions to condemn racism. Cuyahoga County, for example, established the Citizens...
A temper tantrum over a pair of sunglasses led to the arrest of a six-year-old. That six-year-old child with known medical issues was arrested by the school’s resource officer, placed in zip ties by another officer, put in the back of a police car, taken to a juvenile center for processing fingerprinted, had their mug...
The current COVID-19 public health crisis is affecting everyone, but is acutely impacting those working in the health care field. A Morning Consult survey polling 1,000 healthcare workers across the U.S. in January 2021 found that almost one in two workers reported that their mental health and daily life had worsened during the pandemic, close...
