Better Storytellers: Avoiding Bias and Microaggressions in Medical Documentation

Wednesday, April 9, 2025

10:15am – 10:35am ET

Location: Trade - Lobby Level

CE: 0.25 CME Credit

Speaker(s)

Pierre G. Detiege, MD FAAEM (he/him/his)

Assistant Clinical Professor
Louisiana State University - New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose

Co-Speaker(s)

Jordan Vaughn, MD (she/her/hers)

Clinical Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine
LSU Emergency Medicine
New Orleans, Louisiana

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose

Disclosure(s):

Pierre G. Detiege, MD FAAEM: No financial relationships to disclose

Jordan Vaughn, MD: No financial relationships to disclose

This session will start with an example of patient charting with common language used to describe patients. We will review the prevalence of negative patient descriptors and derogatory language in patient charting based on recent literature. Considering this era of patient access to medical records, we will discuss the impact this language has on the physician-patient relationship. We will also discuss how this bias and negativity can be transmitted to other providers and effect patient care. Finally we will review examples of more patient-first language , providing more empathy and justice in patient care.

Learning Objectives:

Recognize bias and microaggressions in the language placed in patient charting and understand how derogatory patient descriptors can perpetuate bias to other providers.
Describe the effect negative language in medical records can have on physician-patient relationship and how this negativity can impact physician burnout.
Demonstrate more patient-first, positive language for patient charting.