Newborn Black Babies in the US Are More Likely to Survive Childbirth if Black Doctors Care for Them
Aug. 23, 2020 -
Newborn black babies in the US are more likely to survive childbirth if Black doctors care for them instead of White doctors, a study has found.
The study published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA (PNAS) also found that the babies are three times more likely to die when cared for by White doctors.
The mortality rate of Black newborns had a decrease of between 39% and 58% when they were looked after by Black physicians, according to the research.
The shocking results of the study are indicative of how racial disparities in human health can affect even the first hours of a person's life.
Meanwhile, the findings also showed, by comparison, the mortality rate for White babies was mostly unaffected by the doctor's race.