Intended for healthcare professionals

Editorials

Racial discrimination in medicine

BMJ 1995; 310 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.310.6978.478 (Published 25 February 1995) Cite this as: BMJ 1995;310:478
  1. Kwame J Mckenzie
  1. Visiting associate editor BMJ, London WC1H

    Equity for patients is unlikely if we don't treat doctors fairly

    There is now considerable evidence that people from minority ethnic groups are discriminated against at each stage of their medical careers.1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 This week's BMJ carries two papers that point to continuing discrimination on application to medical school.1 2 McManus et al studied nearly 7000 students who applied to one of five chosen medical schools in 1991 and showed that similarly qualified applicants from minority ethnic groups were 1.46 times more likely to be rejected than their white peers (p 496).1 Esmail et al found a similar pattern among all applicants to medical school in 1992 (p 501).2 These papers add to the picture painted by the original reports by McManus's group on medical school applicants in 1981 and 19863 4 and to the report of the Commission for Racial Equality which showed discriminatory practices in the admissions procedure at St George's Hospital Medical School, London.6

    Once admitted to medical …

    View Full Text

    Log in

    Log in through your institution

    Subscribe

    * For online subscription