Episode Details

CPSolvers: Anti-Racism in Medicine Series

Episode 20 – Medical Racism and Indigenous Peoples

Show Notes by Sudarshan (“Sud”) Krishnamurthy

April 4, 2023

Summary: This episode highlights the checkered past of medicine and the advancements in the field that have occurred at the expense of the humanity of Indigenous peoples. During this episode, we hear from Dr. Nav Persaud, a staff physician in the Department of Family and Community Medicine at St. Michael’s Hospital in Unity Health Toronto, and Dr. Alika Lafontaine, the current President of the Canadian Medical Association. Together, our guests explain how Indigenous knowledge systems are the foundation of modern medicine and also share strategies to promote truth and reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples in North America. This discussion is hosted by Alec Calac and Gillette Pierce.

Episode Learning Objectives

After listening to this episode, learners will be able to…

1. Explain how the dark legacy of discrimination and deliberate oppression of Indigenous Peoples has led to present-day disparities across the world
2. Describe how medicine has held some white men to high esteem, even when they harbored significant racist and sexist notions
3. Identify the role of Indigenous knowledge systems in shaping much of modern medicine today, yet experiencing erasure from the mainstream 

Credits

• Written and produced by: Alec J. Calac, Gillette Pierce, Sudarshan Krishnamurthy, Rohan Khazanchi, MD, MPH,  Dereck Paul, MD, Jazzmin Williams, Victor A. Lopez-Carmen MPH, Ashley Cooper, Naomi F. Fields, LaShyra Nolen, Jennifer Tsai MD, MEd, Chioma Onuoha, Ayana Watkins, Michelle Ogunwole MD, Utibe R. Essien MD, MPH
• Hosts: Alec J. Calac and Gillette Pierce

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