Friday, March 29, 2024

Black Female Transplant Surgeon Talks Racism in the Organ Donation Process

Velma Scantlebury - feat_6d1a120c-b6f5-4571-98fa-0a4a99efd72f
Velma Scantlebury

*The first Black American female transplant surgeon has called out the racial biased that permeates the organ donation system. 

Velma Scantlebury told Zenger that Black Americans continue to face unique disadvantages with the organ donation process compared to whites. Scantlebury, who has worked in the industry since 1989, said what Black Americans need most is greater awareness about the need for more organ donors. 

Here’s more from CNN:

African-Americans have a more difficult time getting on kidney transplant lists, even though they are more likely to have end-stage renal disease. They trail whites in access to kidney transplants. Scantlebury said her black patients face inequality in health care, poor treatment by some doctors, lack of insurance, late referrals to specialists and a lack of health literacy.

“They are often diagnosed late, due to a lack of equity of health care. When referred to transplant, many have difficulty navigating the system to get the required tests. Hypertension and diabetes are more common in African-Americans, and despite this, many patients are neglected when it comes to getter their kidney function checked,” said Scantlebury, who has performed more than 2,000 transplants.

READ MORE: How 2 Black Organ Transplant Recipients Beat The Odds

Scantlebury has had her own unique challenges navigating an industry that is dominated by white men and white surgeons.

“My parents taught us that education is important and that we can be anything we want to be. I did not grow up seeing obstacles. I saw possibilities,” she said. “My parents knew I wanted to be a doctor, and despite not having any means, my mother came to the United States to clean floors … suffering much humiliation to bring us from Barbados to this country.”

“She wanted to make it possible for me to become a doctor. So, with the strength and belief of my parents, my belief in God, and that all things are possible, I pursued my dream.”

After retiring from the Christiana Care’s Kidney Transplant Program in Delaware in 2020, Scantlebury currently works as a professor of surgery at Texas Christian University and the University of North Texas Health Science Center and Medical School, in Forth Worth, Texas, according to the report. 

She shares her perspective about the organ donor industry in “Beyond Every Wall: Becoming the first Black Female Transplant Surgeon,” published in June. 

“Racism was very evident. On a few occasions patients objected to my being their surgeon. Only in one situation did the Japanese surgeon defend me, and spoke up,” she said. “Patients assumed I was there to clean their room, take their trays, but never the doctor. I had to maintain my self-esteem and keep telling myself, ‘Yes, I can! I am capable; I am talented, I can make it with the help of God.'”

Per the reprpt, she gave reluctant patients the choice of a Black female surgeon or no surgeon at all.

“I made sure I met as many patients before as possible, so they would not be surprised on the day of surgery. Otherwise, I told them I was the only choice, and they could pass on the organ transplant, and it will be given to someone else. That often changed their mind,” Scantlebury said.

Scantlebury inevitably grew tired of the constant negativity.

“I found it difficult to be everything: wife, mother, surgeon, colleague, friend — and deal with the rejection. At that time, I became depressed,” she said. “I found it overwhelming because at that time, I watched my colleagues get promoted and be given leadership positions, and I was not getting the same treatment.”

She continued, “I had to be away at the hospital so much that I missed a lot of things with my children. As an adult, I now realize that my absence resulted in some emotional issues between them. I know I did the best I could with what little I knew. I lived away from my family, who was not there to help,” she said.

Now vice chair and professor of surgery at Stanford University, she wants to see more women and women of color in the profession. There are currently only 12 Black female transplant surgeons in the United States.

“The silent rule was broken. I had stepped out and did something acceptable. Young girls look to me for possibilities. They, too, seek examples of what can be accomplished. I am glad to be that person,” Scantlebury said.

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