Karmanos Health Equity Book Club
Karmanos Cancer Institute is committed to delivering outstanding and equitable medical care to every patient we serve, as well as their caregivers and family members. This commitment requires us to provide support and empowerment within and beyond the scope of medicine. The purpose of the Health Equity Book Club is to enhance awareness of systematic racism, inequality and misinformation within the medical community. This is achieved through research and reading followed by honest and transparent conversations about difficult topics. Join us as we explore ways in which we can address and respond to issues of disparities in health care delivery to enhance outcomes and better serve all patients. Learn more about Karmanos and McLaren Diversity and Inclusion initiatives here.
Health care professionals, including trainees and students, as well as community members are invited to attend.
Upcoming Event
Thursday, June 16, 2022
4 - 5:30 p.m.
This quarter the Book Club will be reading and discussing, "Unwell Woman: Misdiagnosis and Myth in a Man-Mad World" by Elinor Cleghorn
Register Now
Reading or finishing the book is not required, although it is encouraged. The discussion will be engaging to those who have read the book and those who have not.
More information
If you have any questions, please contact Danny Inman at inmand@karmanos.org.
Mission Statement
The Karmanos Cancer Institute Health Equity Book Club's mission is to build awareness across the Karmanos Community and amongst health care professionals of issues related to and stemming from systematic racism in the health care system and society in the United States. By revealing the contributing factors and results of racism, we seek to highlight an important goal for us as a cancer institute: to expose and better understand the impact of racism on our practice of medicine. We believe that open dialogue within our community of colleagues, patients and families will help to facilitate Karmanos Cancer Institute's goal of equal access and provision of culturally competent, quality care to all patients and their families regardless of race, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation.
Watch: Karmanos Health Equity Book Club Meeting, March 31
Book Focus: "A Review of Research on Disparities in the Care of Black and White Patients With Cancer in Detroit"
The article was published in Frontiers in Oncology July 7, 2021. By Michael S. Simon, Sreejata Raychaudhuri, Lauren M. Hamel, Louis A. Penner, Kendra L. Schwartz, Felicity W. K. Harper, Hayley S. Thompson, Jason C. Booza, Michele Cote, Ann G. Schwartz and Susan Eggly. Read the article here.
Panel
- Jennifer Beebe-Dimmer, Ph.D., MPH - Program Leader, Population Studies and Disparities Research Program; Associate Professor, Department of Oncology; Director, Epidemiology Research Core; Karmanos Cancer Institute; Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Lauren Hamel, Ph.D. - Co-Program Leader, Population Studies and Disparities Research; Associate Professor, Department of Oncology; Karmanos Cancer Institute; Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Natalie Snider - Second-Year Cancer Biology Ph.D. Student, Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Leslie Wilson-Smith - Community Member & Karmanos Research Study Participant
Watch: Karmanos Health Equity Book Club Meeting, December 16 featuring author Dr. Damon Tweedy
Book Focus: "Black Man in a White Coat: A Doctor's Reflections on Race and Medicine" by Damon Tweedy, M.D.
Panel
- Damon Tweedy, M.D. - Author of "Black Man in a White Coat: A Doctor's Reflections on Race and Medicine"
- Isaac J. Powell, M.D. - Member, Genitourinary Multidisciplinary Team and professor in the Department of Urology, Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Taylor Barrow - Second-Year Medical Student, Wayne State University School of Medicine - Class of 2024
Watch: Karmanos Health Equity Book Club Meeting, September 30
Book Focus: "The Health Gap: The Challenge of an Unequal World" by Michael Marmot
Panel
- Patricia Wren, Ph.D., MPH - Chair & Professor of Public Health, Wayne State University
- Eyouab Tadesse - Medical Student at Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Angela Trepanier, MS, CGC - Professor of Molecular Medicine and Genetics; Director, Genetic Counseling Master's Program, Wayne State University
- Bill Winkler - Patient Advocate
Watch: Karmanos Health Equity Book Club Meeting, June 24
Book Focus: "White Fragility: Why It's So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism" by Robin DiAngelo
Panel
- Taylor Barrow, Second-Year Medical Student, Wayne State University School of Medicine - Class of 2024
- Barbara Wolf, Ph.D., Director of Behavioral Health and Physical Wellness, McLaren Health Care
- Brad Ropp, M.D., Chief Medical Officer, McLaren Medical Group
- Mark Schweitzer, M.D., Dean, School of Medicine and Vice President of Health Affairs, Wayne State University
Watch: Karmanos Health Equity Book Club Meeting, March 25
Book Focus: Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents by Isabel Wilkerson
Panel
- M. Roy Wilson, M.D. - President of Wayne State University
- Michael Simon, M.D., MPH - Moderator, Co-Leader, Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Team; Medical Director, Cancer Genetic Counseling Service at Karmanos Cancer Institute; Professor of Oncology at Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Louis A. Penner, Ph.D. - Professor Emeritus of Oncology, Karmanos Cancer Institute, Wayne State University
- Mindy Kim - Third Year Medical Student, Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Anitta Orr - Connor Creek Cancer Action Council Member
- Denise Henderson, M.Ed., BSN, RN, OCN - Oncology Nurse and Patient and Community Educator, Karmanos Cancer Institute
Watch: Karmanos Health Equity Book Club Meeting, Oct. 22
Book Focus: Medical Apartheid by Harriet Washington
Panel
- Michael Simon, M.D., MPH - Moderator, Co-Leader, Breast Cancer Multidisciplinary Team; Medical Director, Cancer Genetic Counseling Service at Karmanos Cancer Institute; Professor of Oncology at Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Marquita T. Chamblee, Ph.D. - Associate Provost for Diversity & Inclusion/Chief Diversity Officer at Wayne State University
- Rhonda Daily, M.D. - Assistant Professor, Behavioral Sciences Division, Department of Family Medicine and Public Health Sciences, Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Peter Lichtenberg, Ph.D. - Director of the Institute of Gerontology (IOG) and the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute; the Founding Director of the Wayne State University Lifespan Alliance
- Alleda Mack, M.D., Ph.D. - Third-Year Hematology/Oncology Fellow at Karmanos Cancer Institute. She has a degree in Molecular Biology from Princeton University, completed her M.D. and Ph.D. at University of Chicago followed by internal medicine residency at Loyola University in Chicago
- Ijeoma Opara, M.D., FAAP - Director, Health Equity and Justice in Medicine Program, Department of Internal Medicine, Wayne State University School of Medicine
- Hayley Thompson, Ph.D. - Faculty Director, Office of Cancer Health Equity and Community Engagement; Associate Center Director of Community Outreach and Engagement, Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute; professor, Department of Oncology, Wayne State University of Medicine
- Justin Klamerus, M.D., MMM - President of Karmanos Cancer Hospital & Network