Health

THE PULSE

Screening to Showcase HIV Documentary

Actor/producer Bill Duke, The Brotherhood Crusade and the Center for the Empowerment of Families will preview the documentary “Faces of HIV” on March 27, at the Nate Holden Performing Arts Center, 4718 W. Washington Blvd., Los Angeles.

The screening will begin with a VIP Reception from 5 to 5:45 p.m. with the screening to follow from 6 to 8 p.m.

R.S.V.P.: By March 22.

Information: (323) 846-1649.

Study Says, Asians, Blacks More Likely to Die After Hospitalization

HONOLULU (AP)—Asian- and African-American patients have a higher risk of dying than Caucasians after being admitted to hospitals for major injuries, according to a study.

“There is substantial and growing evidence of pervasive racial disparities in access to appropriate medical care in a variety of contexts and for a wide variety of medical conditions,” researchers said.

The study was co-authored by Dr. Jerris Hedges, new dean of the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii. It found 2.1 percent of blacks and 2 percent of Asians (including Pacific Islanders) died in the hospital following a significant injury. Whites had a lower death rate of 1.5 percent.

Other ethnic groups were about the same as Caucasian patients.

The “Racial Disparities in Mortality Among Adults Hospitalized After Injury,” report was published in last month’s issue of “Medical Care,” and used data from Hawaii and 21 other states from 1998-2002.

The study examined 489,025 hospitalizations and focused on patients 18 to 64 with injuries mostly to their head, legs, chest, spleen or liver.

Researchers found evidence that physicians might “unconsciously incorporate negative racial stereotypes into their assessment of patients, and this likely affects treatment decisions.”

The report said whites were more likely to be privately insured. Asian patients were least likely “to live in a ZIP code with median income of less than $25,000.”

Among the Asians, language barriers may have interfered with appropriate treatment for many, resulting in disparities.

Racial disparities among black patients were largest among mild to moderately injured patients where there was likely to be more discretion in making decisions, said the study.