Experiences of Black Healthcare Providers and Users in the Canadian Healthcare System: A Case Study of Black Healthcare Providers and Users in GTA


Suleyman Demi, Algoma University

The COVID-19 pandemic amplified health inequity and diversity challenges experienced by ethnic minority populations in Western countries. Although these issues are known, research into equity, diversity and inclusion is uncommon in health research in Canada (Datta, Siddiqi and Lofters, 2021). Furthermore, the over-emphasis on cultural competence obfuscates structural racism embedded in the Canadian healthcare system. Statistics show that racialized are disproportionately infected with the coronavirus (Lopez, Hart and Katz, 2021; Tai et al., 2021). Among those who contracted the COVID-19 virus, Black people were more likely to be admitted to the hospital (Asch et al., 2021) and more likely to die from complications (Golestaneha et al., 2020). Consequently, this study seeks to address the following research questions: 1) what are the experiences of Black healthcare providers during the COVID-19 pandemic? What are the challenges facing Black healthcare providers in GTA? This qualitative study used purposive and snowball sampling to identify 10 healthcare professionals including 2 medical doctors and 8 nurses to form the research participants. information was gathered through in-depth interviews via ZOOM and phone calls due to COVID-19 restrictions. Data were analyzed using coding and thematizations with the help of NVivo software. The study revealed that the Black healthcare professionals interviewed experienced anxiety and neglect. They also reported a considerable burden associated with being disproportionately assigned to the care of COVID-19 patients, high COVID-19 infections and being subject to unfavourable policies. Some of the challenges facing Black healthcare providers include microaggression, barriers to leadership, and mental exhaustion among others. The study recommends tackling anti-Black racism in the Canadian healthcare system in Canada to improve the experience of Black healthcare providers.

Non-presenting authors: Liben Gebremikael, TAIBU Community Health Center; Suzzane SIcchia, University of Toronto Scarborough; Tameika Shaw, TAIBU Community Service

This paper will be presented at the following session: