Reducing neurodisparity
Recommendations of the 2017 AAN Diversity Leadership Program
Citation Manager Formats
Make Comment
See Comments

This article requires a subscription to view the full text. If you have a subscription you may use the login form below to view the article. Access to this article can also be purchased.
Abstract
Many advances in prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of neurologic disease have emerged in the last few decades, resulting in reduced mortality and decreased disability. However, these advances have not benefitted all populations equally. A growing body of evidence indicates that barriers to care fall along racial and ethnic lines, with persons from minority groups frequently having lower rates of evaluation, diagnosis, and intervention, and consequently experiencing worse neurologic outcomes than their white counterparts. The American Academy of Neurology (AAN) challenged its 2017 Diversity Leadership Program cohort to determine what the AAN can do to improve quality of care for racially and ethnically diverse patients with neurologic disorders. Developing a fuller understanding of the effect of disparities in neurologic care (neurodisparity) on patients is an important prerequisite for creating meaningful change. Clear insight into how bias and trust affect the doctor–patient relationship is also crucial to grasp the complexity of this issue. We propose that the AAN take a vital step toward achieving equity in neurologic care by enhancing health literacy, patient education, and shared decision-making with a focus on internet and social media. Moreover, by further strengthening its focus on health disparities research and training, the AAN can continue to inform the field and aid in the development of current and future leaders who will address neurodisparity. Ultimately, the goal of tackling neurodisparity is perfectly aligned with the mission of the AAN: to promote the highest-quality patient-centered neurologic care and enhance member career satisfaction.
Glossary
- AAN=
- American Academy of Neurology;
- CME=
- continuing medical education;
- ED=
- emergency department;
- IAT=
- Implicit Association Test;
- TBI=
- traumatic brain injury;
- VA=
- Veterans Affairs
Footnotes
Go to Neurology.org/N for full disclosures. Funding information and disclosures deemed relevant by the authors, if any, are provided at the end of the article.
Editorial page 257
Podcast: NPub.org/acslf7
- Received March 21, 2018.
- Accepted in final form December 6, 2018.
- © 2019 American Academy of Neurology
AAN Members: Sign in with your AAN member credentials (e-mail or 6-digit Member ID number)
Non-AAN Member subscribers: Sign in with subscriber credentials
Log in using your username and password
Purchase access
AAN members must change their passwords on the AAN site
For assistance, please contact:
AAN Members (800) 879-1960 or (612) 928-6000 (International)
Non-AAN Member subscribers (800) 638-3030 or (301) 223-2300 option 3, select 1 (international)
Sign Up
Information on how to subscribe to Neurology and Neurology: Clinical Practice can be found here
Purchase
Individual access to articles is available through the Add to Cart option on the article page.
Access for 1 day (from the computer you are currently using) is US$ 39.00.
Pay-per-view content is for the use of the payee only, and content may not be further distributed by print or electronic means.
The payee may view, download, and/or print the article for his/her personal, scholarly, research, and educational use. Distributing copies (electronic or otherwise) of the article is not allowed.
Disputes & Debates: Rapid online correspondence
- Breaking the glass ceiling
- Nitin K. Sethi, Associate Professor of Neurology, New York-Presbyterian Hospital, Weill Cornell Medical Center (New York, NY)
Published February 09, 2019
NOTE: All authors' disclosures must be entered and current in our database before comments can be posted. Enter and update disclosures at http://submit.neurology.org. Exception: replies to comments concerning an article you originally authored do not require updated disclosures.
- Stay timely. Submit only on articles published within the last 8 weeks.
- Do not be redundant. Read any comments already posted on the article prior to submission.
- 200 words maximum.
- 5 references maximum. Reference 1 must be the article on which you are commenting.
- 5 authors maximum. Exception: replies can include all original authors of the article.
- Submitted comments are subject to editing and editor review prior to posting.
You May Also be Interested in
- Article
- Abstract
- Glossary
- Acknowledging the impact of bias
- Strategies for overcoming bias
- Enhancing health literacy and patient-centered education in the digital age
- Strategies for enhancing health literacy and patient-centered education in the digital age
- Promoting research and education in neurodisparity
- Discussion
- Author contributions
- Study funding
- Disclosure
- Acknowledgment
- Footnotes
- References
- Info & Disclosures