SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The American Academy of Pediatrics is taking steps to eliminate race-based guidance in the medical field.
Before May, the organization used a set of racial guidelines that it says could inaccurately apply race correlation or adjustment factors leading to a differing approach in care and outcome. For example, there was guidance on which infants could be more susceptible to urinary tract infections or jaundice based on their race.
ABC10 Health Expert Dr. Payal Kohli said for a long time doctors believed biological differences in certain races could change the way you proceed with a patient. She said in reality, it's the differences in the rate of detection, socioeconomic status, and access to care. It's a change she said is long over-do.
"I think the American Academy of Pediatrics is really setting a precedent here for the rest of the organizations in medicine, the professional organizations, to sit down and take a frank look at their guidance, especially as it relates to race and really ask ourselves the question, 'is this real science or is this pseudoscience and is it time to revise that guidance so that we can really help to narrow those disparities that exist in healthcare?'" Kohli said. "There are some true biological and genetic differences that certain races may be predisposed to certain conditions, or to have more severe manifestations of those conditions, for example, hypertension in Black Americans occurs at a higher rate and tends to be more resistant, so it's something that we should be looking for more carefully in that population."
Dr. Kohli said it's important to re-evaluate the guidance because a portion of the population is getting suboptimal care partially due to the history of their use.
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