The Call Experiment by EmpowHer New York | Fighting unconscious bias in healthcare
When it comes to getting proper healthcare, it shouldn’t matter what your name is or how you sound like. Your pain shouldn’t be underestimated because of biological myths that are not only scientifically false but also fantastical in nature. The Call Experiment by EmpowHer New York
More than 30 calls were made to the 24-hour nurse hotlines altering between “white names” and “white voices” and “black names” and “black voices”. The results were consistent with the data they had from papers about unconscious biases in medicine and fairly illustrated in their experiment. 77% of “Black name” and “Black voice” calls resulted in Urgent Care – protocol for minor injuries or illnesses- instead of the appropriate direction: Emergency Room – protocol for life-threatening conditions.
When it comes to getting proper healthcare, it shouldn’t matter how white or black your name and voice sound. But in 2020, it still does. 25% of medical residents believe blacks have thicker skin, and it has been proven women, but especially black women, get poorer healthcare treatment than men. So, that wanted to prove that unconscious bias in medicine is not a myth.
EmpowHer New York gives real women a voice despite the challenges they face. They are uniting them in support of self-love, career success, and even health. With their relaunch, they were challenged with creating a piece to spark a conversation about the unconscious bias in medicine and create an opportunity for change in an industry often considered stagnant, our healthcare system.
In the US, blacks are 34% less likely to be prescribed proper pain medicine for conditions such as abdominal pain, black women die at 3-4x the rate of white women during childbirth, are 22% more likely to die from heart disease, and 71% more likely to die from cervical cancer. As shocking as these numbers may seem, to hear actual racial bias in a real-life medical emergency is truly heartbreaking.
About EmpowHer New York
is a social catalyst that ignites the conversation about womxn who break through the glass ceiling imposed by society and live authentically according to their truth.
Credits
Campaign: The Call Experiment
Agency: The Bloc / New York
Client: EmpowHer New York
