A little while back, we brought you an episode about a really interesting study being conducted

at barber shops around Los Angeles.

We're going to play it for you again and talk about some new research of mine that

touches on one of the themes in that episode, representation in medicine.

One problem for African American men and other underserved populations is access to healthcare,

and part of the problem with access to care is a lack of physicians with whom these patients

can identify.

I spoke about this issue with one of my co-authors, Dr. Uttiba Essian from the University of Pittsburgh.

Our study, which was spearheaded by Dan Lee at UCLA, was just published in the annals

of internal medicine.

We looked at how state bands on affirmative action programs have impacted the racial and

ethnic makeup of medical students in the US.

It's an issue with a lot of implications for diversity in medicine and for patients.

Here's my discussion with Uttiba followed by a re-broadcast of the episode we're calling,

a shave, a haircut, and a blood pressure test.

Let me start by having you introduce yourself.

My name is Uttiba Essian.

I'm an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, and my research

focuses on ensuring health equity for patients with chronic disease, especially cardiovascular

diseases.

What is it that is brought to the table when a black male patient is seen by a black male

doctor?

...