New book examines the doctor’s legacy and racism in medicine

By Michal Ruprecht, American Cities Health Journalism Fellow

“Legacy,” Dr. Uché A. Blackstock’s New York Times bestseller, traces her journey as the first black mother-daughter family to attend Harvard Medical School — Blackstock, her twin sister and her mother all graduated from the school — and the legacy of health inequality and racism in medicine.

During her book talk at Health Journalism 2024, moderated by STAT science correspondent Usha Lee McFarling, Blackstock, who is also founder and CEO of Advancing Health Equity, reflected on her mother’s medical career as the first medical student in her family.

“Writing the book helped me see my mother,” Blackstock said. “She did a lot of really wonderful things. But when I look back, I realize how really difficult life was for her… I really recognize all the barriers she literally had to overcome to get to where she was.”

Blackstock also spoke about her personal experiences with race at a young age and how her environment shaped her understanding.

“I had the opportunity to grow up in a very rare environment where I saw doctors who looked like me,” she said. “I wasn’t as aware of racial health inequities. While I noticed that my neighborhood looked very different than others, when my parents and I often talked about what racism looks like, it was more interpersonal in nature. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized I lived in a racially motivated neighborhood.”

After medical school, Blackstock’s mother practiced at Brookdale Hospital in Brooklyn. Blackstock said her mother chose the hospital because it served an underserved community.

Inspired by her mother’s career, Blackstock followed in her footsteps and completed her training at Kings County/SUNY Downstate Hospital in Brooklyn, which cared for a similar patient population.

“I began working with people who were historically underserved,” Blackstock said. “In the years since, I’ve felt my mother by my side in so many of my own interactions with patients. Her ability to listen and genuinely care continues to be a model for me, and that’s something our patients are crying out for now more than ever.”

Blackstock concluded the talk with her thoughts on how physicians can combat racism in their field, stressing that there is no one-size-fits-all solution and that change will require structural adjustments to the way black youth are introduced to medicine.

“I feel like we’re finding a lot of solutions that are needed in our communities, and that gives me hope,” Blackstock said. “And then I love the medical students. I feel like so many medical students are so smart, and they’re the ones who are really challenging us to be better.”

Michal Ruprecht is a third-year medical student at Wayne State University School of Medicine and a health journalist in Detroit, Michigan. He has worked for ABC News, MedPage Today, The Michigan Daily, and the American Public Health Association. He is a 2024 AHCJ American Cities Health Journalism Fellow.