Episode 13: Pink Tax and Pink Ribbons - Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2021
In this episode, all four ladies weigh in on their personal experience with the gender gap in healthcare and tips for self-advocacy in healthcare.
Inspiration
In this episode we talked a lot about how we’ve navigated various interactions with medical professionals - from giving birth for the first time, to conquering phobias, to getting a life-saving diagnosis thanks to a brave nurse. What these experiences have in common is that we weren’t validated by our medical team, leading to prolonged diagnoses or unnecessary pain. If you’re in a position where you don’t feel your doctor believes you - or you feel unsafe, unseen, or unheard - know you have the power to switch doctors at any time until you find the right fit for you.
Self-advocacy can be difficult for many, and in the case of doctor’s visits, you may sometimes find yourself in a position where you’re not able to advocate for yourself at all. Here are a few ways to make self-advocacy easier:
Keep a note on your phone with questions or symptoms so you don’t forget to bring these to your doctor’s attention.
Record instructions and recommendations from your doctor to refer to later. You can either create a voice memo or take hand-written notes. Don’t be afraid to ask them to repeat themselves if you’re unclear.
Bring a trusted partner or friend if you’re not confident. Just having someone in the room who’s on your team and understands your circumstances can empower you to be clear about your needs.
Set an agenda and write out your talking points ahead of time to make sure you cover everything you need to.
Related Resources
If you’re still not feeling confident in your appointments, Johns Hopkins published four tips for talking to your doctor that can help.
To combat accidental gender, race, and age bias in healthcare, Duke Health recommended a variety of changes like additional training, cultivating diverse healthcare teams, and robust data collection and analysis.
BBC Future did an entire series on the healthcare gap between men and women. They noted that women are less likely to have their pain treated and are less likely to be given a diagnosis. You can also follow the TODAY show’s new series “Dismissed,” which aims to uncover the “health risk of being a woman.”
