How Advertisers Can Help End Health Disparities

By now, it comes as no surprise that the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affects Black people. In fact, researchers found that Black and Hispanic/Latinx people account for more than half of the COVID-19 hospitalizations and were three times more likely to die from the disease.

But this isn’t a new phenomenon. We’ve seen this before: elevated death rates of Black people during the 1918 influenza pandemic, oversaturated hospitalizations with the H1N1 virus, and even recurring spikes of the seasonal flu within Black communities. Black people have faced countless healthcare disparities throughout history; COVID-19 is just shining a spotlight on them.

As we charge against this latest pandemic with an arsenal of newly developed vaccines, we’re forced to simultaneously address the plague behind the pandemic: health disparity. In the Black community, medical innovation is often met with hesitancy and distrust — and for valid reasons. Black people have been experimented on, turned away from hospitals, and left stranded in resource deserts. Many recognize that they have a poorer quality of care due to preestablished prejudices. And for those who do trust the system, there are logistical barriers that may remain. Among them, insurance coverage, internet access, and physical access to clinics. Can we, as healthcare marketers, make any headway with such long-established problems?

Yes, we can. As healthcare advertisers, we’re experts in developing long-term plans of action to better serve patients. We are at the tipping point, and we must focus our efforts on providing equitable resources for Black patients. It won’t be easy to rebuild trust, but there’s hope, opportunity, and, above all else, there’s a responsibility. To start, certain obstacles must be extracted so everyone has a fair opportunity to be in good health. We can do that together.

Here are 4 ways brands can help Black patients beyond Covid-19:

Why: Healthcare brands often put out messaging for the general population that may have that condition. But, if everyone’s experience is different, should the message be too? Although Black people have valid reasons to distrust the medical field, brands that make a commitment to communicate to Black people can help change this. We have seen specific, insight-driven messaging truly help patients better understand their conditions and help them advocate for themselves.

What we can do: At Patients & Purpose, we’re committed to helping every patient become a better advocate for their health. That’s why we dive deep into these communities to truly understand their demographic DNA, and then deliver segmented and relevant content based on their specific needs.

When speaking to Black patients, it’s okay — no, encouraged — for pharmaceutical brands to openly address the specific challenges this community faces when seeking care. Brands should ensure that they have a firm understanding of the challenges Black patients face, both in their present life experiences and generationally. And using data-driven insights when crafting messaging can help positively celebrate Black culture, reflect an understanding of their communities, and exhibit empathy to their specific issues.

Why: Black people would prefer to receive guidance from Black medical experts, but they are severely underrepresented in the healthcare space. This lack of representation continues to build onto a foundation of mistrust — mistrust that stems in medical ethicist at Harvard Medical School Harriet Washington describes this history in her award-winning book Medical Apartheid, demonstrating that the last 4 centuries of exploiting Black Americans are the principal contributor to their current mistrust in
the medical community. She writes, “In dissecting this shameful medical apartheid, an important cause is…the history of ethically flawed medical experimentation…. Such research has played a pivotal role in forging the fear of medicine that helps perpetuate our nation’s racial health gulf.”

When looking at the current climate of our country, we are hopeful that steps will be taken to dismantle institutional and systemic racism. And as advertisers, there are ways we can help. By meeting Black patients where they are, and having information accessible through community-trusted channels, we can start to rebuild trust and, in turn, better help Black patients.

What we can do: A brand’s message will resonate most when it comes from the voices of the Black community. In Black families, intergenerational dialogue is routine and often helps younger members of the family to become more aware of their own healthcare needs. At the same time, younger people also motivate older members to take care of their own health. To truly help Black patients, we need to provide time and resources to work with members in this group. We can tap into Black community leaders, families, churches, institutions, and healthcare workers to ensure the right people have our message and can help deliver it.

We’ve seen this successfully done in other communities. In partnership with the CDC, Indigenous American/Alaskan Native leaders, elders, and activists used digitally disseminated resources to urge members of the Cherokee Nation to put aside their hesitancies and get vaccinated. A report from the Urban Indian Health Institute showed “the primary motivation for participants who indicated a willingness to get vaccinated was a sense of responsibility to protect the Native community and preserve cultural ways.” The shared sense of culture, strong family values, and having the message come from trusted voices in the community helped thousands of members receive a vaccine.

Along with Black churches and local institutions (like barbershops), Black communities are also online. In fact, Black people are one of the nation’s most avid social media users. Recent research shows that:

• 24% of Black adults in the US say they use Twitter
  • Black people are 3 times more likely to post on Twitter each day compared to white people
  • US Black millennials watch 73% more YouTube on mobile per person than the general population of the same age. And their watch time on YouTube has more than doubled in the last two years

As advertisers, we should consider how brands can partner with Black social influencers and how social media can assist brands to help better understand the community and create more authentic connections.

Why: According to recent Nielsen research, “70% of Black millennials say they are more likely to buy from a brand that takes a stand on race-related issues.” Proof that brands can benefit from not only talking the talk — but walking it. Instead of reflecting the culture around us, we should think through more ways to help push it forward.

Another study found “38% of African Americans between the ages of 18 and 34, and 41% of those aged 35 or older, expect their favorite brands to support social causes.” As advertisers and organizations, our efforts to go beyond a corporate message are essential and will be rewarded with a loyal base in this community. When brands focus on going into the communities to help uplift the Black experience, they can further build trust among this group and increase awareness in their brand’s efforts.

What we can do: A good way to do this is to build community partnerships. At P&P, we worked to help more Black women in Memphis get screened for breast cancer. Memphis had the highest rate of breast cancer mortality in the nation. After talking to these women, we learned that they trusted each other above anyone else. So we created a campaign that centered around that relationship. We assembled a coalition of national organizations and local groups to inspire the Black women of Memphis to make a pact with each other to get screened — if not for themselves, then for each other. Our SisterPact campaign was featured at beauty salons, on highways, in local papers, and in TV ads. After launching our campaign, 79% of women who saw the campaign said they were highly likely to get a mammogram, 75% were likely to encourage a friend to get a mammogram, and 33% told a friend to get one. That’s the power of working with a community and changing its health for the better.

Why: Brands should remember that Black people are just that — people. Black folks have ups and downs and shouldn’t be defined by the victimization and struggles they face. As advertisers, we must find ways to solve these inequities without defining the Black community by them. Fear-based messaging can sometimes do more harm than good and can actually stop segments of the population from seeking healthcare. Like all people, Black people laugh, they cry, they feel pain, and they feel joy. It’s important we celebrate each and every layer that makes them human.

What we can do: This community is deserving of healing, happiness, and hope. They experience life inclusive of racial pains and traumas, not exclusive to them. In fact, three quarters of Black millennials say they’re more likely to buy from a brand that positively reflects Black culture. When creating a campaign, thinking through how to celebrate the positive attributes of the Black community will resonate most and in turn build trust and
loyalty.

As healthcare advertisers, we have the power to help strengthen the bridge between the medical industry and Black patients. It starts with creating a long-term plan of action and remaining consistent. For a brand to be heard, it needs to take the time to better understand Black patients, be transparent, and provide equitable resources to match their specific needs.

Building trust with the Black community won’t happen overnight. But making a commitment to the Black audience will help build trust and loyalty for your brand. This said, and above all else, it will provide the Black community with a healthy way forward. At P&P, we see this as a responsibility. To successfully reach true equity in healthcare, everyone must have a fair opportunity to be in good health. Together, we can work to help make that happen.