Racial Discrimination: EMS Law
Abstract
Racial discrimination can be based on color, gender, religion, background and social class. It can be experienced in learning institutions, workplaces, social gatherings and the health care industry. Several lawsuit cases have been brought forward for receiving poor quality emergency medical services. Most are brought forward from the black community and Muslim group of persons. For example, some persons from the black community living in particular neighborhoods claim it takes longer to access EMS ambulance services. These sentiments are also recorded among persons from the Muslim community. The amount of time an ambulance takes to arrive and attend to a white person is relatively shorter. This compared to the amount of time the ambulance will take to attend to either a black or Muslim person. It was discovered black community especially from lower social classes hardly access EMS services. This is attributed to stereotypes such as high crime rates in the neighborhoods, Thus, EMS services mainly accessibility to ambulances hardly cater to racially discriminated persons. This paper focuses on various levels of racial discrimination in the healthcare sector. It also discusses various policies and regulations passed under EMS Law to reduce and eliminate racial discrimination within various departments of health and emergency medical services.
Racial Discrimination: EMS Law
Introduction
Black individuals have always been regarded as well informed sources of information with regards to racial discrimination. Conversely, their counterparts from the white community are believed to judge and prejudice against them. Social referencing targets persons from the minority communities in assessing racial discrimination. Although the Civil Rights Act Title VII was passed in 1964, racial discrimination continues to persist. This paper will however discuss racial discrimination with regards to Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Law (Apfelbaum, Sommers & Norton, 2008).
Types of Racial Discrimination
Racial discrimination can be witnessed in different and diverse forms. It is highly influenced by opinions from members of a particular community racially discriminating persons from minor groups. For example, some colleges admit more persons from the white community than the black group of persons. Perceptions also play a vital role in fueling racial discrimination. Persons from the white community avoid using some references and terms perceived to originate from the black community. They perceive them as identifying terms utilized among the black community. Persons from the Muslim community are associated with terror attacks. Thus, credibility levels with regards to persons from the Muslim and black community are highly reduced. This has affected delivery of emergence medical services to the Muslim and Black community (Jennifer & Benoit, 2013).
EMS Law
The EMS law was passed as an act in 2008. However, effectiveness and efficiency was first witnessed in March 2009. The EMS Act tasked the department of health to upgrade and update medical and health care regulations. The law published new EMS principles and policies aimed at reducing racial discrimination in health care sector. The Civil Rights Act Title VII was passed to protect persons from discrimination based on their race, color, gender and religion before acquiring employment. It also aimed at prohibiting making decisions based on stereo types, assumptions, traits and racially grouping people with regards to performance rates. Consequently, the EMS Act 2008 was passed to guide oversights of emergency medical service across health care facilities (EMSDDH, 2010).
The EMS Act consists of policies procedural in nature. They aim at helping and clarifying health care regulations passed since the Act was passed. The new policies passed and conducted are several. Firstly, an EMS Organization Quality Assurance and Improvement Plan was developed. EMS provider certification extensions were also issued and procedures with regards to lapsed certifications developed and implemented. It also discussed transportation of patients across various health care facilities. Ambulances were required to ensure they establish interior climate standards suitable in transporting patients. The department of health also issued forms aimed at helping the process of EMS services. The forms complied with mandates, policies, principles and regulations within the department of health. Based on the listed polices and regulations, the EMS Lawful Act aimed at achieving equality and fairness across races and genders to reduce and eliminate racial discrimination. Due to the EMS Law, health care facilities and services are accessible to patients from different races, genders, social classes and religion (EMSDDH, 2010).
Conclusion
Identifying racial discrimination is a high-stake effort. There are people who strive to appear like they are not discriminating. Others aim at highlighting presence and effects of racial discrimination among modern day societies. However, people should acknowledge racial discrimination affects lives and health conditions among targeted group of persons. Accepting existence of racial discrimination is vital to fight and eliminate it from communities and globally. Thus, the EMS Law is applicable in reducing and eliminating racial discrimination from health care sector and other global industries.
References
Apfelbaum, E. P., Sommers, S. R., & Norton, M. I. (2008). Seeing Race and Seeming Racist? Evaluating Strategic Colorblindness in Social Interaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95(1): 918–932.
Emergency Medical Services Division of the Department of Health (EMSDDH). (2010). EMS Laws, Regulations and Policies, Department of Health Report.
Jennifer, R. C., & Benoit, M. (2013). How the Opinions of Racial Minorities Influence Judgments of Discrimination, Basic and Applied Social Psychology Journal, 35(1): 334–345.