About this project.

There is a long history in America of Black and brown people being dismissed, exploited and otherwise mistreated by the medical establishment. It is no surprise, then, that medical distrust runs deep:

Compared to non-Hispanic white patients, non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic participants were 73% and 49% more likely to report mistrust in health professionals, respectively.

This mistrust was one of the drivers for low COVID vaccination rates in communities of color; more broadly, mistrust can lead to worse outcomes for patients, deepening the already stark health inequities in our country.

There are plenty of statistics on this issue, but not enough personal stories. This project was created to amplify the experiences of Black and brown people specifically, and to surface community-driven solutions. We believe these stories will strengthen understanding between health providers and their patients of color, leading to better care and better health outcomes.

“Storytelling to Build Medical Trust” was jointly led by Boston Medical Center, Everyday Boston, and the B.L.A.C Project, in partnership with Transformational Prison Project, We Got Us, and EmVision Productions. The project was funded by Boston University Clinical and Translational Science Institute and MA-CEAL.

Our Approach

This project had three distinct phases:

  • Restorative justice circles, led by Transformational Prison Project

  • Story collecting, by Everyday Boston’s Story Ambassadors and by EmVision Productions

  • Design of medical school curriculum, led by We Got Us, based on the stories collected