Experts say racism impacts public health

David Turcotte and a team of collaborators have compiled and published the Greater Lowell Community Health Needs Assessment every three years since 2013.

The lengthy document probes factors influencing residents’ health, like housing, education and employment. It analyses public health data and identifies residents in the community with the highest risk.

And when you ask health care professionals in Lowell about the relationship between race, ethnicity and health, this document is often referenced.

“It’s clear that there is an aspect of institutional racism that is connected to worse health outcomes for communities of color,” said Turcotte, who is a research professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell specializing in sustainable housing, conflict resolution and environmental justice.

In Boston and Somerville, officials have declared racism a public health crisis. A petition signed by over 1,000 people urges the city of Lowell to follow suit and institute other reforms.

The Lowell City Council is expected to discuss the matter on Tuesday, as it moves through a bevy of motions on racism and equity with differing approaches and language. But what are the links between race and health?

Health officials point to the prevalence of certain medical conditions, which are higher among certain ethnic or racial minorities than white residents. This has been documented locally and nationwide for COVID-19 rates, but it is not a phenomenon limited to the ongoing pandemic, officials say.

Chief of Community Health & Policy at Lowell Community Health Center, Sheila Och, listed asthma, diabetes, and hypertension, as examples, referencing numbers reported in the 2019 Greater Lowell Community Health Needs Assessment.

Hispanic children four and under in Lowell were hospitalized for asthma at almost twice the rate as white children in the city between 2002 and 2014, according to the report. Hospitalization for diabetes in Lowell is “substantially” higher than in surrounding communities, according to the report. The report cited state level numbers, indicating 12.3% of adults who identify as Black, 11.7% of adults who identify as Hispanic and 8.7% of adults who identify as white

Julia malakie / lowell sun file sheila och, mph, chief of community health and policy at lowell Community Health Center, says the experience of racism can have a severe impact on mental health.