BlackDoctor’s annual Top Blacks in Healthcare Thought Leadership Summit provides a national platform for healthcare providers, advocates, executives, and changemakers to come together to speak on the health inequities affecting Black communities and offer actionable solutions.
Held in Washington, D.C., this year’s theme was “Powering the Future of Our Health: Where Culture Meets Care.” With Black Americans continuing to face disproportionate rates of chronic disease, delayed diagnoses, barriers to quality care, and underrepresentation in clinical trials, events like the Thought Leadership Summit remain crucial. It’s an opportunity to provide culturally relevant solutions to improve outcomes while ensuring the voices reflect those of the communities most affected.
Following the opening remarks from Dr. Toyese Oyeyemi, Executive Director of Social Mission Alliance, and BlackDoctor’s President and CEO, Akinwole Garrett, the day’s meaningful discussions began, covering a multitude of critical issues for the Black community.
Moderator: Kristin Vaughan (BlackDoctor)
Panelists:
Black people have higher incidence rates across multiple cancers, yet continue to face poorer quality of care. During this discussion, leading voices in oncology discussed persistent disparities in cancer outcomes in the Black community and how the healthcare system needs to change to address them.
Panelists talked about gaps in quality healthcare, with Gillespie noting that the responsibility shouldn’t fall on the backs of the Black community. “We can’t put all the onus on the Black community,” he said. “The system needs to step up.”
Gober said that, for cancer outcomes to change, researchers need to “come out of the lab and get into the community.”
Moderator: Kristin Vaughan
Panelists:
Cardiovascular disease continues to disproportionately affect the Black community, often with more severe, yet preventable outcomes. In this panel, speakers explored active strategies to close access gaps, while also educating the audience on pertinent topics such as gender differences in heart attack symptoms and advanced lipid screening.
Dr. Lozama highlighted the disparities in cardiovascular disease: “Sixty percent of Black women over the age of 20 have some form of heart disease.”
The panelists also spoke on how heart attacks can present differently in Black women, with pregnancy complications and menopause often being overlooked risk factors.
Dr. Morgan encouraged the audience to advocate for themselves at the doctor’s office by asking for an EKG or ECG. She also advised people to get flu shots, regular dental care, and move their bodies to protect their heart health. “We removed movement from our lives, and we’re getting sicker.”
Moderator: Ricki Fairley (TOUCH: The Black Breast Cancer Alliance)
Panelists:
Clinical trials remain critical to advancing modern medicine and improving outcomes across multiple diseases and conditions. Yet, Black people continue to be underrepresented in medical research, leaving researchers and healthcare providers with little insight as to how new drugs or treatments work in our bodies. In this panel, leaders in clinical research and patient advocates discussed barriers to clinical trial participation among Black communities and how clinicians can get more involved. The conversation focused on strategies that can increase participation, improve access, and encourage culturally competent conversations between providers and patients.
Bolds-Johnson, a breast cancer survivor, shared a powerful testimony of how participating in clinical trials saved her life, and urged healthcare providers to better educate Black patients about clinical trials. “Ask [them about clinical trials], don’t assume, offer it to everyone, and say it in terms that are easy to understand,” she said.
“I think clinical trials need to be an upfront consideration as soon as you’re diagnosed with anything,” said moderator Fairley, a breast cancer survivor and patient advocate.
Moderator: Yvonne Bryant
Panelists:
Sickle cell disease is a chronic condition that continues to impact Black communities disproportionately. The panelists held a powerful discussion on treatment progress, ongoing challenges, and how advocacy has helped improve outcomes.
Dr. Osunkwo dispelled the misconceptions that sickle cell is solely a “Black disease” and that it only causes severe pain. “Sickle cell is a chronic disease, not just a pain disease,” she explained. “It requires holistic care that is multifactorial.”
She urged the audience to be knowledgeable about risk factors, particularly because the condition is genetic. People should be having conversations with their partners about their family history. “Are we telling our teenagers that before you fall in love, you need to make a conscious decision to pick your partner who doesn’t have the trait?” Dr. Osunkwo asked.
Moderator: Dr. Adam Friedman (George Washington University)
Panelists:
Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is a chronic skin condition that disproportionately affects Black patients, especially Black women. It is a commonly misunderstood condition that can often take up to a decade to be diagnosed, causing years of suffering for many.
Panelists shed light on the challenges of stigma, delayed diagnosis, and care gaps while highlighting the importance of early recognition and intervention. “Many Black people don’t talk about HS because they believe it’s tied to chronic boils or STDs,” said patient advocate Cydney Carter.
They also discussed the importance of patient advocacy, as providers can be dismissive. “How are we supposed to move forward if your doctor is not taking the time to research what’s destroying you?” asked patient advocate Jeremy Hinkston.
“Just because they’re in a white coat doesn’t mean they’re right — you can push back,” Crawford said.
In one of the day’s most powerful moments, an audience member publicly shared her HS diagnosis after hearing the panelists’ stories, prompting an emotional embrace from Hinkston, who welcomed her into the “HS family.”
Moderator: Dr. Robert Rock
Panelists:
The future of healthcare will require a diverse workforce that’s well-prepared to address health inequities across communities. In this panel, speakers discussed how many students may turn away from the healthcare field when clinical opportunities don’t work out, highlighting the need for greater awareness of other career options. “Many students don’t know opportunities in healthcare outside of clinical,” said Turner.
There was also concern about a reduced pipeline of future Black doctors. “I worry there’s not going to be a lot of doctors that look like me in the future,” said third-year emergency medicine student Caitlin Johnson-Bryant.
The panelists also touched on the importance of programs that introduce the youth to opportunities in medicine, urging institutions and organizations to meet them where they are if they want to make an impact. “Make yourself available to the audience that you want to reach out to you,” Dr. Franklin said. “Intentionality and presence are everything.”
The summit made one thing clear: addressing health inequities in Black communities must go beyond conversations. It demands actionable strategies, community involvement, and system-level changes. The path forward requires accessible, equitable, and culturally responsive care to change outcomes.
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