Perception of racism in healthcare environments and associated factors in black women

Abstract

TThis study sought to investigate the perception of racial discrimination in healthcare environments and identify associated factors. This is a cross-sectional study, carried out between November 2021 and January 2022, with self-declared black women residing in Rio Grande do Sul. The survey was carried out in an online format, with a structured and self-administered questionnaire. The scale of perception of discrimination in health was the instrument adopted to assess the main outcome of interest. As independent variables, sociodemographic, behavioral and health variables were analyzed. Descriptive statistics comprised the absolute (n) and relative (%) frequencies of the variables of interest, while the chi-square test was used to observe the distribution of the outcome according to independent variables. To verify the associated factors, Prevalence Ratios (PR) were calculated, crude and adjusted using Poisson Regression. The sample consisted of 511 self-declared black women, with a prevalence of 19.8% of high perception of discriminatory racial experiences in health environments. The sociodemographic factors and health conditions associated with the main outcome were religions of African origin (PR=1.73; 95%CI 1.17-2.54), use of the public network (PR=1.71; 95%CI 1.09 -2.68) and previous diagnosis of Common Mental Disorder (PR=1.56; 95%CI 1.07-2.27).