Harm occurs when race is used as a proxy for characteristics stereotypically ascribed to members of a group, much as the obligatory mention of age is used to indicate the typical patient’s expected health status and vitality.
The causes of many health behaviors are deeply rooted in our culture, and using a counseling model that assumes individual control and responsibility for these behaviors can cause patients to feel hectored instead of helped.
The 2011 duty-hour restrictions and the shift to team-based care challenge the medical profession to reconceptualize the traditional ethic of individual physician responsibility for patients.
AMA J Ethics. 2015;17(2):124-128. doi:
10.1001/virtualmentor.2015.17.2.conl1-1502.