What is it about?
Despite efforts to address inequalities of representation in medical curricula, deficits in racial representation in research and resources remain. This study investigates the potential and imperatives for healthcare information services to contribute to health equity through their collections. Synthesis of the findings through a framework of Critical Race Theory (CRT) tenets illustrates the relevance and utility of CRT as a tool for pursuit of equity, in information practice, scholarship, and education.
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Why is it important?
COVID-19 illustrated health disparities experienced by racially minoritised people, with heightened risks faced by Black and South Asian communities lending the issue transparency and urgency. The pandemic also underscored our contemporary reliance on health data, medical research, and global information sharing. It is difficult to think of a clearer example of the imperative for information integrity than where health depends on it.
Perspectives
The aim of this study is to advance understanding of the imperatives for healthcare information services and professionals to address structural inequity and systemic racism experienced by racially minoritised patients, and to evaluate the degree to which UK healthcare libraries are aware of these issues and are seeking resources more representative of the UK’s racial diversity, including an examination of Critical Race Theory (CRT) as a framework for analysis supporting this work.
Grace ODriscoll
City, University of London
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Health information equity: Rebalancing healthcare collections for racial diversity in UK public service contexts, Education for Information, December 2022, IOS Press,
DOI: 10.3233/efi-220051.
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