Black medical group meets in Detroit, addresses minority health concerns

Health disparities in minority health and its accompanying challenges and opportunities were among the topics discussed during the opening day of the 113th annual National Medical Association Convention and Scientific Assembly Saturday at Cobo Center.

Thousands of doctors are expected to attend the National Medical Association conference, with seminars, panel discussions and other events focusing on issues affecting minority health outcomes, including the Affordable Care Act, the declining number of black male doctors and efforts to bridge the gap between minorities and health care providers. The convention runs through Wednesday.

“We are so excited to be in Detroit this year,” said Angelique Valladares, a spokeswoman for the NMA. “We have a lot of support from the local doctors here and we want to work together to make health concerns our mission.”

The opening session, of the Surgeons General Summit, held in Grand Ballroom A, focused on the health of minority populations in the U.S. , past, present and future. It was presented in partnership with the Henry Ford Health System and the University of Michigan Medical School. It included the present Surgeon General of the United States Vivek Murthy as well as former surgeons general from 1990 to 2013.

Murthy, whose parents immigrated from India, shared examples of his own brushes with racism growing up in America and said he could not talk about health disparities without first talking about racial injustice.

“The deaths of Sandra Bland, Samuel DuBose, and the worshipers in the South Carolina church have been on full display for the world to see these past months and the frequency with which they are occurring have opened the eyes of many who thought racial injustice was a thing of the past,” said Murthy.

He continued, “Some say it isn’t my place to talk about racial inequality, and I say, until it is a thing of the past, it is every American’s place to talk about it.”

Murthy’s predecessors Regina Benjamin, Richard Carmona, David Satcher, Joycelyn Elders and Antonia C. Novello were part of the summit.

Elders touched on the Affordable Care Act during her address.

“At least it’s a start,” she said. “You may not like it, but let’s fix it. Let’s change our expensive sick care system into a health care system.”

National Medical Association President and Chair Lawrence L. Sanders, Jr. M.D. was in the audience during Murthy’s address.

Asked why Detroit was selected as the convention site, he told The Detroit News, “In many ways, Detroit reflects the challenges many experience in a real way. This gives the National Medical Association an opportunity to really illustrate our commitment to work at ending health disparities to create a path for health equity.”

The NMA was established in 1895 after many black physicians were denied access into the American Medical Association.

In the decades that followed, the NMA worked to improve access to the health care system for black patients and physicians and fought to open traditionally whites-only medical schools in the South to African-American students.

The association supported the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s by coordinating sit-ins and marches, supporting voter-registration drives and lobbying for passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Conference organizers said other forums will touch on topics that disproportionately affect minorities, including HIV, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, prostate cancer and diabetes.

A presentation on the Affordable Care Act at 9 a.m. Sunday will inform physicians about its new guidelines and regulations.

“A lot of people don’t know what their coverage is with Obamacare. Some don’t know what it means to have health care,” Valladares said. “We want to make sure the doctors are well versed and can give out the right information to their patients.”

The Council on Concerns of Women Physicians’ Annual Muriel Petioni Award Program at 12:30 p.m. Sunday in Grand Ballroom B will feature guest speaker Jasmine Guy, an actress and dancer best known for her role as Whitley Gilbert-Wayne on the TV sitcom “A Different World.” Tickets are $90.

A full schedule of convention events is available online.

ksmith3@detroitnews.com and slewis@detroitnews.com