Legacy

A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine

De: Uché Blackstock MD

Narrado por: Uché Blackstock MD

AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

ONE OF TIME’S 100 MOST INFLUENTUAL PEOPLE IN GLOBAL HEALTH

“This book is more than a memoir—it also serves as a call to action to create a more equitable healthcare system for patients of color, particularly Black women.”—Essence

One of NPR’s 11 Books to Look Forward to in 2024

One of Good Morning America’s 15 New Books to Read for the New Year

“Legacy is both a compelling memoir and an edifying analysis of the inequities in the way we deliver healthcare in America. Uché Blackstock is a force of nature.”—Abraham Verghese, MD, New York Times bestselling author of The Covenant of Water

“[An] extraordinary family story.”—Dr. Damon Tweedy, The New York Times Book Review

“This book should be required reading for all medical students.”—Gayle King, CBS Mornings

The rousing, captivating story of a Black physician, her career in medicine, and the deep inequities that still exist in the U.S. healthcare system

Growing up in Brooklyn, New York, it never occurred to Uché Blackstock and her twin sister, Oni, that they would be anything but physicians. In the 1980s, their mother headed an organization of Black women physicians, and for years the girls watched these fiercely intelligent women in white coats tend to their patients and neighbors, host community health fairs, cure ills, and save lives.

What Dr. Uché Blackstock did not understand as a child—or learn about at Harvard Medical School, where she and her sister had followed in their mother’s footsteps, making them the first Black mother-daughter legacies from the school—were the profound and long-standing systemic inequities that mean just 2 percent of all U.S. physicians today are Black women; the racist practices and policies that ensure Black Americans have far worse health outcomes than any other group in the country; and the flawed system that endangers the well-being of communities like theirs. As an ER physician, and later as a professor in academic medicine, Dr. Blackstock became profoundly aware of the systemic barriers that Black patients and physicians continue to face.

Legacy is a journey through the critical intersection of racism and healthcare. At once a searing indictment of our healthcare system, a generational family memoir, and a call to action, Legacy is Dr. Blackstock’s odyssey from child to medical student to practicing physician—to finally seizing her own power as a health equity advocate against the backdrop of the pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement.

©2024 Uché Blackstock, MD (P)2024 Penguin Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Ultimately, Legacy’s greatest contribution is in bringing this extraordinary family story to light — as much a part of the American fabric as those of our default narratives of success.”—Dr. Damon Tweedy, The New York Times Book Review

“This book should be required reading for all medical students.”—Gayle King, CBS Mornings

“Uché Blackstock has gifted us with a brilliant and timely wake-up call of a memoir. In her capable hands, a light is shone upon the deep inequities of our medical system. But more than a lament, this book is a battle cry. And like Dr. Blackstock, so many of us will find through reading Legacy, that we are ready for the fight.”—Jacqueline Woodson, National Book Award-winning author of Brown Girl Dreaming and Red at the Bone

loved the entire thing!

This is such a thoughtful book. From start to finish it is a learning experience and a truth telling exhibition. For many it may be the first time they learn about several public health implications. I'm greatful for Dr. Blackstone's vulnerability and call for accountability on all levels.

What an amazing book!

An eloquently written book. I believe this is a must read, for everyone from high school students to adults. As a Black woman I relate to so much in this book, and appreciate you for writing it. Thank you!

Captivating and personal...

You know that feeling you get from the overwhelming amount and quality of history, culture and affirmation communicated through what appears as a simple nod to most other folks when you pass another person of color in white spaces. That's what I felt throughout the pages of this book. Thank-you Dr. Blackstock. Your journey is touching many more lives than I believe you realize.

Compelling storytelling.

This book should be read by all pre med students. This author’s experiences are similar to many minorities in medicine, hearing this perspective may help a future doctor (one would hope). Great read.

Feeling her pain through the same health care experience

As a NP and Latina I was able to relate so much to the author of this book! Thank you so much for writing it and presenting the view of the patient and the healthcare provider of color!

I Feel Validated!

I have served as a physician assistant and US Naval Medical Officer for the past 14 years. Dr. Blackstock’s personal journey, revelations, and the way she brought attention to the multi-faceted ways in which racism impacts the lives of BIPOC people and our communities and is inherently undermining the “health” of our nation. Racism harms everyone, even those who inflict it up Us. Within the military and military medicine, everything Dr. Blackstock spoke of remains pervasive within this organization. The exception is that our captive patient population has only the military treatment facilities to receive their primary care. So many similarities between the military clinical experience and what she described during her time at NYU. I think of how many young Black male service members have had their stage 2 hypertension go untreated for years because “you’re still young and this is common in Black people.” The young Black service members still being encouraged to be sterilized, while young white females are required to take time to “think about it” and see a mental health provider before being permitted to have the procedure. I think of the countless examples of Black pain being disregarded and untreated by comparison to white counterparts. I’ve seen it and experienced myself and the lack of meaningful interest on the part of policy makers and the leadership in order to address these biases, healthcare discrepancies, and the lasting harm caused to our captive patient population is so disturbing. But I remain inspired by the incredibly important work Dr. Blackstock and so many others like her are doing on the outside and want to have that kind of impact myself one day. Thank you Dr. Blackstock for all you are doing to make the world a better place for us all! 🥰

Hit home

This book is a must read. I love how Dr. Blackstock gave the reader first hand experiences and you can tell how much she cares. Ty Dr.

A Must Read

Everone in the medical profession should read this book. Black patients deserve the same care as all other patients. Our lives will ALWAYS matter. Dr. Blackstock shined a much needed light on this topic. What an important work! I commend her bravery for writing this very necessary book.

A bright spotlight on the medical system, its legacy of cultural bias and possible changes

A heartfelt dissertation and in sharing of intellectual, emotional and physical experiences with the medical system from the inside. Powerful and provocative.

Excellent. Compassion. We need more voices like Dr. Blackstone.

This is a must read for humanity and in particular ore-med and medical students. It should be re-read in practice and by anyone in healthcare and congress. Thank you Dr. Blackstone.