by Talk Business & Politics staff (staff2@talkbusiness.net)
Anastasia Makhanova, a psychology professor at the University of Arkansas, has been awarded a $3.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health. She will use the money to lead a five-year study on how stress and illness may cause bias in healthcare workers.
“Most people tend to focus on individual differences when it comes to looking at bias,” Makhanova said. “There’s been a lot less attention to the fact that the same people can make more biased decisions in particular situations.”
Research shows that, on average, patients from racial and ethnic minority groups receive worse care than white patients. By identifying situations that could cause a medical provider to act with increased bias, Makhanova’s research can show health care workers the more effective times to use existing anti-bias strategies. The results could also lead to systematic changes that reduce burnout and encourage health care providers to not work when they are sick.
