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Hello and welcome to The Excerpt. I'm Dana Taylor. Today is Sunday August 18th, 2024. Earlier this year a study published in the Landt Child in Adolescent Health Journal

found widespread racial and ethnic disparities in medical care, treatment, and health outcomes across all pediatric specialties.

That there are health care inequities in America that disproportionately affect marginalized communities isn't news.

But why do these disparities persist?

Here to discuss the current state of access to care in the US

is Dr. Aila Stanford, author of Take Care of Them, Like My Own, Faith, Portitude, and A Surgeon's

Fight for Health Justice. Thanks for being on the excerpt, Dr. Stanford.

Thank you, Dana, for having me.

Let's start with the book.

Why did you feel compelled to write it?

In my life, I am a pediatric surgeon by training.

I've seen things on sort of both sides of the scalpel if you will regarding health

inequities in our country. Being a child raised in North Philadelphia in an

impoverished city.

There were certain expectations or lack of expectations

people had of me because of my socioeconomic status.

But then once I became a surgeon,

there were things that I saw play out

with the care being delivered.

And I felt like I could use my life

...