Reflections on ‘Black Identities in Science and Healthcare’ written by Achele Agada, an MBBS student who took part in an online Inclusive Education Forum on Tooting Campus to discuss issues and successes..
The conversation of ‘Black Identities in Science and Healthcare’ is an intriguing one. I first began exploring this narrative whilst researching the experiences of Nigerian doctors in the UK, the impacts of colonialism on their identities as healthcare professionals, and their identity formation as individuals existing within the UK.
This topic is one I came to with a vested personal interest. My father himself is a Nigerian doctor in the UK, and so I have grown up hearing many stories from his perspective as well as from the community of Nigerian doctors that has surrounded me. These doctors spoke passionately of their hopes and dreams; their trials and tribulations; and their unique perspectives of being Nigerian doctors in the UK. From their accounts I gleaned some of the complexities that came with migration, transnationality, and being racialised as the Black minority - especially within the NHS as a public servant.
On 20th of November 2024, I was able to further explore this topic when we gathered for an open discussion - inspired by Clive Myrie’s ‘Everything is Everything’ (Myrie, 2023) - of what it means to be Black and in healthcare. Questions such as ‘why does representation matter?’, and ‘how can systems of oppression be challenged as well as whose responsibility is it to challenge these systems?’, arose and were tackled by panellists Cynthia Simon, Course Director BSc Healthcare Science (Physiological Sciences) and Senior Lecturer in Clinical Physiology (Chair); Dionne J.M Daniel, Group Director of Nursing, Fundamentals of Care (Clinical Standards); Sanchez-Jeremiah Davis, Lecturer in Physiotherapy, Admissions, Outreach & Recruitment Tutor & Chartered MSK Physiotherapist; myself - Achele Agada; as well as those who joined the call from across Tooting Campus and the St George’s Hospital community.
Black healthcare professionals in the NHS are disproportionately subjected to disciplinary actions compared to their white colleagues (The WRES Implementation team, 2019); they regularly must contend with micro (and macro)-aggressions whilst continuing to serve in caring and sacrificial roles; and they face a lack of recognition and progression throughout their careers. In academia too, Black individuals deal with underrepresentation in senior faculty roles and limited access to research funding (Murugesu, 2019).
One striking anecdote illustrating this from my thesis, was from a Nigerian doctor who, despite being the most qualified person in their department, was repeatedly overlooked for promotion. On this they remarked “It’s not just about the qualifications; it’s about being seen as worthy of those qualifications”.
It is clear there are unique challenges and systemic barriers encountered by Black individuals in science and healthcare, but it is not always clear how these barriers are being addressed, or how we as Black individuals can develop a positive professional identity in these fields. It is essential institutions work to implement strategies for creating inclusive and supportive environments for Black scientists and healthcare workers, both in higher education and professional settings. The notion of ‘Black Identities in Science and Healthcare’ should become synonymous with heritage, innovation, success, and most importantly belonging.
Myrie, Clive. (2023). Everything is Everything. Hodder & Stoughton
Murugesu, Jason Arunn (2019). Ethnic minority academics get less UK research funding. [online] New Scientist. Available at: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2222994-ethnic-minority-academics-get-less-uk-research-funding/
The WRES Implementation team (2019). A fair experience for all: Closing the ethnicity gap in rates of disciplinary action across the NHS workforce NHS Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) strategy NHS England and NHS Improvement. [online] Available at: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/201/07/closing-the-ethnicity-gap.pdf