May 21, 2021

COVID-19 Vaccine in Minority Communities in Lexington, KY

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One of the reasons why there's a hesitancy with taking
the vaccine in the African-American,

Hispanic community deals with cultural experiences that
have led up to this point.

Speaking for the African-American community,
one mistrust that is commonly spoken or at least quoted

is that with the Tuskegee Experiment.

African-American males were subject to experimentation
during research, and that research was syphilis.

And so that left a stain in the community and the trust
in the medical community.

When we look at the Hispanic community,
one of the things is concerns of immigration status,

of maybe not having insurance,
and there has also been a mistrust

with Western medicine.

Culturally wanting to do more
holistic things, natural things.

By understanding the different cultures of your
patient, you have a better understanding of their

perception of your treatment, their diagnosis,
and also their expectations.

And so by being more culturally aware,
you're able to help your patients a lot better.

And so one thing I just want to put out there,
it's a pandemic.

So it's a global thing.

So all humanity is affected and so we definitely want
to do our job in trying to get the word out there

to get vaccinated.

The more that we get on board with that,
the more that we're able to get back to a new normal.

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Baptist Health Lexington: COVID-19 Vaccine in Minority Communities

Cultural experiences may have caused hesitancy in vaccines in minority communities. Learn more about COVID vaccine and racial equity in Lexington, KY.

COVID-19 Vaccine in Minority Communities HealthTalks Transcript

Jai Gilliam, MD, Internal Medicine & Pediatrics:
One of the reasons why there’s a hesitancy in taking the [COVID-19] vaccine in the African American and Hispanic communities deals with cultural experiences that have led up to this point.

Speaking for the African American community, one mistrust that is commonly spoken, or at least quoted, is the Tuskegee experiment. African American males were subject to experimentation during research, and that research was on syphilis. That left a stain in the community and on trust in the medical community.

When we look at the Hispanic community, one of the things is concern about immigration status and maybe not having insurance. There has also been a mistrust with Western medicine, and culturally, wanting to do more holistic things, natural things.

By understanding the different cultures of your patients, you have a better understanding of their perception of your treatment, their diagnosis, and also their expectations. By being more culturally aware, you’re able to help your patients a lot better. One thing I just want to put out there is, it’s a pandemic, so it’s a global thing. All humanity is affected and so we definitely want to do our job to try to get the word out there to get vaccinated. The more we get on board with that, the more we’re able to get back to a new normal.

Next Steps and Useful Resources:

Learn More About the COVID-19 Vaccine
What is Vaccine Efficacy?
What You Need to Know About Your Vaccine Card
Many Black Americans Don’t Trust Vaccines. Here’s Why They Should