CAEP 2021 Academic Symposium: recommendations for addressing racism and colonialism in emergency medicine

Purpose Racism and colonialism impact health, physician advancement, professional development and medical education in Canada. The Canadian Association of Emergency Physicians (CAEP) has committed to addressing inequities in health in their recent statement on racism. The objective of this project was to develop recommendations for addressing racism and colonialism in emergency medicine. Methods The authors, in collaboration with a 40 member working group, conducted a literature search, held a community consultation, solicited input from expert medical, academic and community advisors, conducted a national survey of emergency physicians, and presented draft recommendations at the 2021 CAEP Academic Symposium on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion for a live facilitated discussion with a post-session survey. Results Sixteen recommendations were generated in the areas of patient care, hospital and departmental commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion, physician advancement, and professional development and medical education. Conclusion Emergency physicians are uniquely positioned to promote equity at each encounter with patients, peers and learners. The 16 recommendations presented here are practical steps to countering racism and colonialism everyday in emergency medicine.