Mostafa, Irina;
Onwumere, Juliana;
Wood, Lisa;
(2025)
A systematic review and thematic synthesis of healthcare professionals’ experiences of racism in the workplace and the support they receive.
Journal of Workplace Behavioral Health
pp. 1-29.
10.1080/15555240.2025.2519298.
(In press).
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Abstract
Despite the growing ethnic diversity among healthcare staff, research consistently highlights the high prevalence of racism experienced by ethnic minority healthcare professionals. This review aims to understand forms of racism encountered by healthcare professionals and evaluate the effectiveness of support mechanisms in addressing these challenges. The systematic review was conducted following the PRISMA guidelines and registered on PROSPERO (CRD42024512888). Peer-reviewed qualitative studies focused on ethnic minority healthcare professionals in clinical settings who reported experiencing racism were searched across databases (Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, Scopus, Google Scholar). Studies from 2000 to 2024 were included, and results were thematically synthesized. Twenty-one studies were included in the review. Thematic synthesis revealed six key themes: (1) the spectrum of racism in healthcare, (2) systemic inequalities and lack of career opportunities, (3) experiences of exclusion and alienation, (4) endurance and silence, along with their consequences, (5) insufficient formal resources and the need for structural support, and (6) coping strategies and resilience among healthcare professionals. The findings underscore the prevalent nature of racism in healthcare settings and insufficient formal support available for ethnic minority professionals. There is an urgent need for healthcare organizations to implement anti-racism policies, improve training, and create inclusive environments.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | A systematic review and thematic synthesis of healthcare professionals’ experiences of racism in the workplace and the support they receive |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1080/15555240.2025.2519298 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1080/15555240.2025.2519298 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © 2025 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, and is not altered, transformed, or built upon in any way. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent. |
| Keywords: | Racism; healthcare; discrimination; workplace support |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Division of Psychiatry UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Division of Psychiatry > Epidemiology and Applied Clinical Research |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10211174 |
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