American Indian/Alaska Native Communities Face Barriers to Dermatologic Care, Disparities and More
Access to medical care, including dermatological health care, has been a persistent challenge for individuals within the American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN) communities. “Despite increasing evidence of health status inequities affecting Indigenous populations, health services often fail to address health and social inequities as routine aspects of health care delivery,” according to authors of a 2016 ethnographic study.
Globally, measures of health and well-being of the AIAN community fall significantly behind those of the general population, and life expectancies of AIAN individuals are projected to be dramatically lower than average. These challenges are compounded by discriminatory and stigmatizing experiences faced by AIAN individuals worldwide.