New data released by Statistics Canada paints a sobering picture of the health-care system — one that consistently fails Black Canadians. These alarming findings indicate that Black men and boys experience hospitalizations at a rate of 272 per 100,000 individuals. By contrast Black women and girls are still admitted 253 per 100,000 for the peak of 2023/2024. This glaring contrast highlights serious disparities that still exist in our health-care system, especially among communities impacted by systemic racism.
Dr. Notisha Massaquoi’s research on Black Canadians’ access to health-care services in the Greater Toronto Area. She argues that racism is ingrained in the health-care system. This environment discourages many Black patients from seeking necessary care, leading to higher hospitalization rates for treatable conditions such as asthma, diabetes, and hypertension compared to other racial groups. Over the span of eight years, the data paints an alarming picture. Further, Black Canadians are 50% more likely to be admitted to hospitals for health issues that could have been prevented than their non-racialized peers.
According to Canadian Institute for Health Information statistics, 84% of non-racialized Canadians indicated that they received an excellent or very good quality of health care. This figure is not the complete picture for Black Canadians. Non-racialized men had the highest avoidable hospital admissions at 257 per 100,000. Women saw an even greater decline of 226 per 100,000. The Chinese population had unbelievably low hospitalization rates. For men and boys, 65 per 100,000, but women and girls even lower, at 52 per 100,000.
The effects of these disparities go far beyond cents on a dollar. As Dr. Cynthia Maxwell reminded us, chronic illnesses frequently start as a consequence of the barriers imposed by the health-care system. Many Black patients report greater ease in spaces where they feel less vulnerable to the possibility of being subject to racist acts. Dr. Massaquoi underscores a larger point: Black patients have a hard time accessing Black providers or clinics that understand their needs. When faced with these costs, it’s no surprise that many either delay necessary care or forego it completely.
“There’s a lack of trust in terms of going to a primary health-care setting or going to see a primary health-care provider, and when a community has experienced a lot of marginalization in the health-care system, what they do is avoid going until it’s too late.” – Notisha Massaquoi
Additionally, Black women are more likely to die from life-threatening diseases including breast and cervical cancer. It is those realities that Dr. Maxwell emphasizes are made worse by limited access to screenings and preventive care in the first place.
“We know Black women have less access to screening for conditions such as breast cancer and cervical cancer, which are major issues and have high morbidity and mortality in Black communities,” – Dr. Cynthia Maxwell
Thus, the increased imperative for greater race disaggregated data collection and community engagement is crucial to an effort that reveals the distinct challenges each community faces. Dr. Maxwell points out that without data like this, we can’t begin to understand all the factors at play for different populations.
“Without the … race-specific data, you can’t really get to the nuances of what the particular issues are within a community and what it means for a community to be disproportionately affected,” – Dr. Cynthia Maxwell
Both Dr. Massaquoi and Dr. Maxwell both emphasize the need to increase representation within the health-care workforce. Beyond that, they call for a greater number of Black health-care providers, and for more clinics tailored to address the needs of Black communities.
“We will likely never have enough Black health-care providers to provide access to all Black community members, so it is important for all allies in the health system to engage in and learn about cultural safety and competencies that will help drive better health-care outcomes,” – Dr. Cynthia Maxwell
The data clearly indicates that while other racialized groups—including South Asian, Chinese, and Filipino Canadians—exhibit significantly lower hospitalization rates, Black Canadians continue to face systemic barriers to equitable health care.
