Racial Disparities in Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine

Brown et al examine discuss three studies related to racial disparities in pulmonary and critical care medicine. The years 2020 and 2021 were marked by many, but a prominent theme was the increased focus on racial disparities and inequities that were bid bare by coronavirus disease (COVID-19) and the worldwide protests calling for racial justice. The studies have investigated the deep seated healthcare disparities that exist in the fields of pulmonary and critical care medicine. All three articles examined disparities through patient self-reported race; however, it must be emphasized that healthcare disparities are a very complex topic, and research should ideally incorporate the concept of race as a social (rather than strictly biological construct, along with neighborhood-level factors and other social determinants of health.