Racism in America remains pervasive. It’s led to sicker, shorter lives for people of color; a healthcare workforce that hasn’t reflected the communities it cares for; and caused harm to nursing and nurses, particularly nurses of color. Aware of its own role in perpetuating systemic racism, the American Nurses Association (ANA) is on a journey of racial reckoning along with many partners inside and outside of nursing and healthcare. In this two-part episode, we hear from leaders in nursing, media, and the life sciences industry about how they are leaning into racial reckoning in their organizations to address and eliminate the harms of racism.

 

In Part II, Shawna Butler, RN MBA and co-host Lucinda Canty, PhD, CNM, FACNM dig into the role media, journalism, and industry play in addressing and eliminating racially driven health disparities and inequities. Vanessa Broadhurst, Executive Vice President, Global Corporate Affairs of Johnson & Johnson describes Our Race To Health Equity, a bold initiative addressing racial and social injustice as a public health threat; reveals funding and partnerships targeted at diversifying the healthcare and broader workforce, and making certain their internal practices are living up to their diversity, equity, and inclusion commitments. Errin Haines, editor-at-large at the nonprofit newsroom The 19th, describes the importance of media in shaping our awareness, accuracy and understanding of the scope of racism in healthcare and why reporting on the people and areas of progress can reduce racially driven health disparities. Email us at [email protected].