Racism and health service utilisation: A systematic review and meta-analysis

PLoS One. 2017 Dec 18;12(12):e0189900. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0189900. eCollection 2017.

Abstract

Although racism has been posited as driver of racial/ethnic inequities in healthcare, the relationship between racism and health service use and experience has yet to be systematically reviewed or meta-analysed. This paper presents a systematic review and meta-analysis of quantitative empirical studies that report associations between self-reported racism and various measures of healthcare service utilisation. Data were reviewed and extracted from 83 papers reporting 70 studies. Studies included 250,850 participants and were conducted predominately in the U.S. The meta-analysis included 59 papers reporting 52 studies, which were analysed using random effects models and mean weighted effect sizes. Racism was associated with more negative patient experiences of health services (HSU-E) (OR = 0.351 (95% CI [0.236,0.521], k = 19), including lower levels of healthcare-related trust, satisfaction, and communication. Racism was not associated with health service use (HSU-U) as an outcome group, and was not associated with most individual HSU-U outcomes, including having had examinations, health service visits and admissions to health professionals and services. Racism was associated with health service use outcomes such as delaying/not getting healthcare, and lack of adherence to treatment uptake, although these effects may be influenced by a small sample of studies, and publication bias, respectively. Limitations to the literature reviewed in terms of study designs, sampling methods and measurements are discussed along with suggested future directions in the field.

Publication types

  • Meta-Analysis
  • Review
  • Systematic Review

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Communication
  • Delivery of Health Care / statistics & numerical data*
  • Ethnicity
  • Female
  • Health Personnel
  • Health Services / statistics & numerical data
  • Health Services Research*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Odds Ratio
  • Outcome Assessment, Health Care
  • Patient Compliance
  • Patient Satisfaction
  • Prejudice*
  • Racism*
  • Treatment Outcome
  • United States
  • Young Adult

Grants and funding

YP is supported by ARC grant FT130101148. Initial work by RH and DC on the systematic review was supported by a New Zealand Ministry of Health-funded fellowship. Contributions by DC and RH to the current systematic review and meta-analysis was supported (in part) by a contract from Health Research Council of New Zealand (HRC 14/262). The funders did not play a role in the research. The work is the authors' own.