Misrepresenting Race — The Role of Medical Schools in Propagating Physician Bias

This article critiques the misuse of race in medical education, highlighting how preclinical curricula often propagate physician bias by misrepresenting race as a biologic rather than social construct. The authors identify five key domains of misuse: imprecise semantics (e.g., outdated labels like "Caucasian"), presenting disease disparities without contextualizing structural racism, race-based diagnostic biases (e.g., associating sickle cell disease exclusively with Black patients), pathologizing race (linking minorities to pathology), and race-based clinical guidelines (e.g., GFR adjustments). These practices reinforce harmful stereotypes and exacerbate health inequities. The authors propose reforms, including standardizing language, contextualizing disparities, and revising research practices to address structural racism. The article underscores the urgent need for medical schools to align curricula with contemporary understandings of race as a social determinant of health.

This article critiques the misuse of race in medical education, highlighting how preclinical curricula often propagate physician bias by misrepresenting race as a biologic rather than social construct. The authors identify five key domains of misuse: imprecise semantics (e.g., outdated labels like "Caucasian"), presenting disease disparities without contextualizing structural racism, race-based diagnostic biases (e.g., associating sickle cell disease exclusively with Black patients), pathologizing race (linking minorities to pathology), and race-based clinical guidelines (e.g., GFR adjustments). These practices reinforce harmful stereotypes and exacerbate health inequities. The authors propose reforms, including standardizing language, contextualizing disparities, and revising research practices to address structural racism. The article underscores the urgent need for medical schools to align curricula with contemporary understandings of race as a social determinant of health.