As someone who integrated her elementary school in Ohio (a Yeshiva), enrolled in an exclusive prep school in New England and became the first AA female in her cardiology program, I’ve spent my life analyzing how to adapt to environments in which I was different. When I enter an environment, I learn the lay of … Read more
If there is any silver lining to the horror that the COVID-19 pandemic has invoked, it is that this time has positioned us to take a critical look at systemic failures (or successes). Undoubtedly, the COVID-19 pandemic has magnified the institutionalized inequities that scholars have pointed to for decades as the root causes of health … Read more
In a year wrought with challenges spanning social, political, and healthcare spheres, one issue has risen to the forefront of our collective consciousness. Structural racism. What is structural racism? A recently published presidential advisory from the American Heart Association states that “structural racism refers to the normalization and legitimization of an array of dynamics–historical, cultural, … Read more
The American Heart Association Scientific Sessions kicked off this morning in everything but the usual fashion—socially distant, virtual, absent the normal red regalia and buzzing convention center. And yet, it felt as though the necessary distance created space for a kind and level of discussion and introspection I’ve never before experienced during a large scientific … Read more
Finally, some excellent news in a year ravaged by innumerable tragedies, the first Black Indian American woman, Kamala Harris, is vice president-elect of the United States, and the American Heart Association has made a commitment to advance cardiovascular health for all-; what a great start to November 2020. I got to attend the American Heart … Read more
“Race is the child of racism, not the father.” -Ta-Nehisi Coates, Between the World and Me. BiDil, a combination of isosorbide dinitrate and hydralazine, was approved by the FDA in 2005 to treat heart failure in African Americans— the first race-based indication in the U.S. Though some groups lauded this move as a win for … Read more
I was recently reading a Time magazine article, which included previously unreported coverage of Congressman John Lewis, the Civil Rights icon, who succumbed to cancer last week. When asked why he continued to tell his story, he responded: …it affects me — and sometimes it brings me to tears. But I think it’s important … Read more
Those of us who work in science, healthcare, and academia often find ourselves teaching others, whether or not we set out to be educators. Residents teach medical students. Nurses precept new nurses. Graduate students teach undergraduates. And faculty roles for researchers and clinicians also include teaching loads. Yet for many of us, our training did … Read more