Race and Us: COVID-19 and Racial Disparities in Our Healthcare System

The history of racial disparities in our healthcare system has created an atmosphere of alienation and distrust on the part of African Americans. Dr. Jessica Zitter and Pastor Corey Kennard will explore how this dynamic is affecting African American communities during the current COVID-19 crisis, and offer a vision of how this country might create a more equitable healthcare system. 

This program is offered as part of Reimagine: End of Life and its virtual festival.

Register by Sunday, May 17, at 11:00AM. The Zoom link will be provided following registration. 

Dr. Jessica Nutik Zitter, MD, MPH, is a national advocate for transforming the way people die in America. She is Harvard and UCSF-trained to practice the unusual combination of critical and palliative care medicine. She works as an attending physician at a public hospital in Oakland, California.

Dr. Zitter is the author of the newly released Extreme Measures: Finding a Better Path to the End of Life. She is a regular contributor to the New York Times and her articles have appeared in The Atlantic, Time Magazine, Journal of the American Medical Association, the Washington Post, and many other publications.

Corey L. Kennard is pastor of Amplify Christian Church and also serves as an activist in the field of healthcare. His holistic approach (body, mind, and spirit) serves as the foundation for his desire to see all human beings treated with dignity, honor, and respect in all facets of life. He began his active work in ministry, as well as the business sector, over 25 years ago. Corey earned a master’s degree from Ashland Theological Seminary and carries out his passion for people as a daring and devoted agent of change.

Corey has been involved in the field of healthcare for over 20 years with over a decade of experience in the areas of palliative care and hospice. He currently seeks to enhance the patient/family experience in healthcare settings. His work has also included leading a spiritual care team at one of Detroit’s largest hospitals, and formerly serving as a faculty lead for Duke University’s Institute on Care at the End Of Life (ICEOL) national training program called, “APPEAL.” In this role, he was instrumental in co-creating a national teaching module for understanding spirituality at the end of life for African-Americans.