What'd You Call Me? Stigmatizing Language in EHRs/EMRs

This is a heavy one! One factor contributing to racial health inequities is implicit bias- or rather the consequences of unchecked biases in healthcare settings.  Implicit or explicit negative attitudes toward patients may adversely impact quality of healthcare and perpetuate health disparities. Stigmatizing language written in a patient’s medical record contributes to attitudes and implicit bias, ergo influencing physician decision-making and treatment. Although medical records are an integral method of communicating about patients, they have been a vector for transmitting implicit bias in the healthcare profession. This episode outlines the importance of mandating that clinicians undergo supplementary training to properly, accurately, and objectively document  patient information on electronic health records (EHRs).

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