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A12 HEALTH
Wednesday 4 May 2022

A pediatrician examines a newborn baby in her clinic in Chicago on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019.
Associated Press
U.S. pediatricians' group moves to

abandon race-based guidance

By LINDSEY TANNER medical director for a Chi- of an academy group on
AP Medical Writer cago health center, said minority health and eq-
For years, pediatricians the academy is making a uity and a pediatrician at
have followed flawed pivotal move. Chicago's Lurie Children's
guidelines linking race to "What makes this so monu- Hospital, noted that the
risks for urinary infections mental is the fact that this is new policy includes a brief
and newborn jaundice. In a medical institution and it's history "of how some of
a new policy announced not just words. They're act- our frequently used clini-
Monday, the American ing," James said. cal aids have come to be
Academy of Pediatrics said In recent years, other ma- — via pseudoscience and
it is putting all its guidance jor doctor groups including racism."
under the microscope to the American Medical As- Whatever the intent, these
eliminate "race-based" sociation have made simi- aids have harmed patients,
medicine and resulting lar pledges. she said.
health disparities. They are spurred in part by "This violates our oath as
A re-examination of AAP civil rights and social justice physicians — to do no harm
treatment recommenda- movements, but also by — and as such should not
tions that began before science showing the strong be used," Heard-Garris said.
George Floyd's 2020 death roles that social conditions, Dr. Valencia Walker, a spe-
and intensified after it has genetics and other biologi- cialist in newborn care and
doctors concerned that cal factors play in deter- health equity at Nation-
Black youngsters have mining health. wide Children's Hospital in
been undertreated and Last year, the academy Columbus, Ohio, called the
overlooked, said Dr. Jo- retired a guideline calcula- new policy "a critical step"
seph Wright, lead author of tion based on the unprov- toward reducing racial
the new policy and chief en idea that Black children health disparities.
health equity officer at the faced lower risks than white The academy is urging oth-
University of Maryland's kids for urinary infections. er medical institutions and
medical system. A review had shown that specialty groups to take a
The influential academy the strongest risk factors similar approach in working
has begun purging outdat- were prior urinary infections to eliminate racism in medi-
ed advice. It is committing and fevers lasting more cine.
to scrutinizing its "entire cat- than 48 hours, not race, "We can't just plug up one
alog," including guidelines, Wright said. leak in a pipe full of holes
educational materials, A revision to its newborn and expect it to be rem-
textbooks and newsletter jaundice guidance — edied," said Heard-Garris.
articles, Wright said. which currently suggests "This statement shines a
"We are really being much certain races have higher light for pediatricians and
more rigorous about the and lower risks — is planned other healthcare provid-
ways in which we assess risk for this summer, Wright said. ers to find and patch those
for disease and health out- Dr. Nia Heard-Garris, head holes."q
comes," Wright said. "We
do have to hold ourselves
accountable in that way.
It's going to require a heavy
lift."
Dr. Brittani James, a fam-
ily medicine doctor and