How patients are treated in the healthcare system

We were required to do a topic on the healthcare system and relate it to post colonial theory, critical race theory, Indigenous people, post modernism, and feminist theory... and more. It also talks about the affects of colonialism on the healthcare system and solutions we can take to hinder the affects that we feel.

1. How patients are
treated in the
Healthcare System
Ahmad, Harris, Yasmine, Sujaana, Danish, Aiman,
and Paul

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0033350623002329

2. Connection to Critical Race Theory
Connection to Healthcare : In this case it was found that certain medical
equipment fails to work properly on patients with darker skin tones as
they were tested on and for people with lighter skin. It was found that the
pulse oximeters that use light transmitted through skin and tissue to
measure the oxygen in a person's blood are 3x more likely to miss low
oxygen levels in black patients than white ones. Even new technology that
measures heart rates by analyzing live or recorded video, struggles to
work well for people of colour when programmed to pick up blushlike
changes in the skin.
What is CRT : Critical Race Theory is an academic concept that explores the relationship between how
we as a society conceptualize the relationship between race, ethnicity, and political laws. It is essentially
based around the belief that race is a social concept and that there can be racism without racist people.
Pulse Oximeter
Yasmine
Article

3. Quote from Article
“Stopping computational bias means making a
much greater effort to recruit people from
different populations to participate in the design
and testing of medical devices.”
- Claudia Wallis

4. Connection to Indigenous Knowledge
What is Indigenous Knowledge?

-The understanding of Indigenous
systems and traditions
-Extremely dynamic across different
groups of Indigenous peoples
-Focus on stewardship, sustainability
and spirituality
-Deeply rooted in Canadian history
Connection to Healthcare?

-Lack of understanding of Indigenous
medical practices
-Racial biases as well as generational trauma
leads to mistrust in the healthcare system
-Significant health disparities among
indigenous canadians and non indigenous
canadians
-Push for integration of traditional practices
alongside modern medical treatments

5. Quote and snapshot of article
"In recent years several writers have argued that the perspective known as
‘postcolonial theory’ should be more widely adopted by Canadian settler healthcare"
- Mary Midgley

6. Connection to Post-Colonial Theory
Ahmad
Postcolonial theory is a way of studying how the history of colonialism affects cultures and societies today

The article discusses how postcolonial theory is important for understanding how Indigenous patients are
treated in the healthcare system. It says that we shouldn't just see healthcare as a medical thing, but also
as a social thing. The article explains how things like history, society, and politics affect the healthcare that
Indigenous people can get. It also challenges the idea that Indigenous people are to blame for their health
problems and shows how long term issues of post-colonial history and racism make it hard for them to
get good care. ie biased treatment, legacy of residential schools, and more…

It also talks about how nurses and doctors need to think about their own backgrounds and how that
affects the way they treat Indigenous patients. The author suggests that they should create a welcoming
and respectful environment for Indigenous patients, so that they feel safe and comfortable. By using
postcolonial theory in their work, healthcare workers can change the way people think about Indigenous
health issues and work towards making sure Indigenous communities get fair and equal access to
healthcare. This can be work toward by including additional training to train these nurses and doctors.

7. Connection to Anti-Oppression
Anti-Oppression Summary:
●Framework addressing systemic inequalities and power imbalances
●Challenges structures of domination (e.g., racism, sexism, ableism, classism)
●Promotes equity, inclusion, and justice for marginalized groups
●Focuses on historically oppressed communities
Connection to Healthcare:
●Ensures fair treatment for all patients
●Addresses discrimination, unequal access, and bias in healthcare
●Aims to foster an inclusive and equitable healthcare environment
●Seeks to provide compassionate, unbiased care to all, regardless of identity or socioeconomic
status

8. Connection to Feminist Theory
●What is Feminist Theory
○It’s looking at the world through the lens of gender inequality
○It has changed over time with the change of society

●1 in 5 women feel as though they were ignored or dismissed by health care
providers
●Most medical research is done on male animals and male cells
●In a study in Denmark, 72% of women spent more time waiting for their
diagnosis compared to the men
●Just looking at the experiences of pregnant women within the healthcare
system
○1 in 5 women reported experiencing mistreatment when receiving
maternity care
○1 in 3 black and racialized women reported mistreatment
○45% of women held back from sharing questions and asking concerns.

9. Connection to Postmodernism
★Recognise the fact that our healthcare system often
only approves a small pool of possible solutions to any
given medical problem. They disregard holistic forms
of treatment in place of modern western methods.
★Other time periods, cultures, and societies have
different accepted ways to treat their sick. To us, germ
theory is obvious, the four humours seem silly, but
that’s because we view the past through the lens of
today. From the perspective of the people living
during the Elizabethan times, those methods worked.
Whether we believe so or not. A postmodernist may
recognise this; our ‘facts’ are separate from other
cultures’ ‘facts’.

10. Connection to Critical Disability Theory
Theories of disability in health practice and research - PMC
What Critical Race Theory is:
-To analyze disability as cultural,
historical, relative, social and political
phenomenon
-Analyzes how society teaches us to
think about disability and ability
-How these thoughts can
negatively impact the lives of
disabled people
-Critiques social norms and structure
How it's connected to Healthcare
-Disability theory has a long history
with standard medical practices
(AIDS crisis in the 90s)
-Disabled people having to ‘prove’
they are disabled to doctors
-Understanding how a disabled
person may get medical treatment
compared to an able bodied person

11. Quote from the Article
‘Disability is understood as a social and political issue rather than a
medical one, and this leads to critical questioning of medical
interventions: attempts to cure impairments or to restore “normal”
bodily functioning. Instead, social and political solutions are sought, to
challenge disabling discrimination.’

12. THANKS FOR LISTENING!