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As one of the first Black students to attend Stanford University and the University of California San Francisco medical school, I have personally witnessed racial progress. However, it is disheartening to see California, which once seemed to be leading the nation towards equality, now moving backwards by enshrining racism in its laws. Since the beginning of 2022, California lawmakers have mandated that all continuing medical education courses offered by state-based organizations include a focus on “implicit bias.”
Physicians, including myself, are now required to complete at least 50 hours of coursework on this topic every two years. This is problematic for me as both a physician renewing my license and as someone who frequently teaches continuing education courses.
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The concept of “implicit bias” is inherently racist. It assumes that a person’s skin color determines how they interact with individuals of different races, implying that our melanin defines our behavior. The California law accepts this claim as fact, asserting that “implicit bias… exists,” and that it impacts the behavior of healthcare professionals.
Two medical colleagues are suing California over its requirement to learn about “implicit bias.”
The implication behind this law is that white people are oppressors and black people are oppressed. Implicit-bias trainings for medical professionals often focus on systemic racism, white supremacy, and other race-based attacks. This type of thinking represents a regression to the racist ideologies that were starting to fade 50 years ago. I reject the idea of being taught or teaching such evil concepts.
The proponents of this law argue that it is justified by health disparities between white and black patients. While these disparities are real, attributing them solely to bias oversimplifies the complex factors that contribute to patient health. Throughout my 50 years of medical practice, I have never personally witnessed implicit bias influencing the treatment provided by myself or my colleagues towards patients of different races. Discriminating against patients based on their race goes against the very principles of our profession, which emphasize individualized care.
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Accusing physicians of implicit bias adds no value to our ongoing learning. It detracts from our mission to stay updated on the latest research and treatment methods. Every minute spent on “implicit bias” could have been used to further advancements in real science and improved standards of care. Additionally, the law’s requirement to discuss “strategies” to mitigate bias only perpetuates a fixation on race.
I don’t care that I’m not the target. This still represents the kind of racist thinking that was starting to fade 50 years ago. I don’t want to be taught this evil, nor do I want to teach it to others.
As my license is up for renewal this year, I refuse to participate in any courses that include implicit bias. I will also decline any requests to teach continuing medical education courses from California-based organizations. However, I remain hopeful for change.
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In August 1, an Iranian American colleague and I filed a lawsuit against the state of California with the assistance of the Pacific Legal Foundation. The First Amendment protects our right to refuse teaching the state’s preferred narrative on such a divisive topic. Medical professionals should focus on teaching medicine, not promoting a party line.
I hope this lawsuit serves as a catalyst for reversing California’s moral decline. Our state was once a frontrunner in the progress towards equal treatment regardless of race, and we should not regress by targeting different races. The new racism, regardless of how it is labeled or who it targets, will yield no positive outcomes.
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