I’m a Black doctor. To my Black patients, DEI matters.

“I am so happy to have a Black doc! I feel seen!” A Black patient warmly said this to me as I walked into their hospital room.

I acknowledged his statement with a smile and a humble thanks and proceeded with my care for him.

As a Black female physician in Philadelphia, this experience happens to me on a weekly — if not a daily — basis. It is a shared experience amongst many Black doctors.

And is it any wonder? Many Black people remain uneasy when receiving medical care, given the racial history of medicine.

They’ve heard about research done decades ago at the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, in which doctors didn’t treat syphilis in hundreds of Black men to study the disease’s natural course. They’ve heard about the case of Henrietta Lacks, a Black woman with a tumor whose tissue samples were taken without her consent, and have since been used by tens of thousands of labs around the world, prompting her family to sue for compensation.

However, when a Black patient has a Black doctor, that unease diminishes. They feel seen.

My Black patients feel like they can trust me more than my white colleagues. It’s a simple thing, but it helps facilitate high-quality care.

Yet, diversity in medicine is being threatened by the proposal of a new bill to ban diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in medicine, known as the EDUCATE Act. Last month, Rep. Greg Murphy (R., N.C.) — a former doctor, no less — proposed that all race-based mandates at medical schools and accredited institutions be banned nationally.

“Diversity strengthens medicine, but not if it’s achieved through exclusionary practices,” Murphy said in a statement. “Medicine is about serving others and doing the best job possible in every circumstance. We cannot afford to sacrifice the excellence and quality of medical education at the hands of prejudice and divisive ideology.”

This move is part of a larger backlash against DEI initiatives in all areas of life, with some claiming these programs were even to blame after a door panel blew out of an Alaska Airlines flight in midair. DEI’s critics echo Murphy, claiming DEI practices are racist against white people, and reduce quality because organizations worried about racial quotas won’t always hire the most qualified person for the job.

These critics are wrong.

Critics are wrong.

DEI initiatives are not “exclusionary practices,” as Murphy claims. They are inclusionary practices to ensure those who look like me can be part of our chosen field.

Take medicine, for example. As a profession, it has an abysmally low representation of people of color. Here in Pennsylvania, only 4% of physicians are Black, though 11% of the population is Black. These statistics are mirrored nationally.

All of this has an impact on patient health. Having Black physicians not only increases patient trust and satisfaction but also improves outcomes for Black patients. Recent data have shown that in U.S. counties with 10% more Black primary care physicians, Black residents’ life expectancy is an average of 30 days longer than that of Black people living in counties with fewer Black physicians. Moreover, Black patients who receive care from a Black doctor are more likely to follow up with their yearly health screenings and agree to recommended care.

In short: Increasing the diversity of physicians will improve — not sacrifice — patient outcomes.

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What’s more, medical students who attend a diverse medical school feel better equipped to treat patients of different ethnic backgrounds, no matter their own race. In addition, clinicians who are part of diverse medical teams learn more and have better patient outcomes. Medical schools with diverse students train better all-around clinicians ready to care for anyone, including patients who do not look like them.

Supporting diversity in medicine is beneficial for patients and physicians alike.

However, medical institutions have historically struggled with increasing diversity in medicine — which isn’t a huge surprise, given how expensive it is to obtain a medical degree. Given the recent assault on DEI initiatives in higher education and the overturn of affirmative action by the U.S. Supreme Court, many medical schools have scaled back their DEI initiatives. If the EDUCATE Act were to pass, these racial disparities in physician demographics would only worsen.

As one in six U.S. medical doctors is trained in Philadelphia, this act would cause long-term ramifications on both the recruitment of medical professionals from underrepresented backgrounds and the health-care outcomes in the city. If this act were to pass, the racial health disparities plaguing the city of Philadelphia would be further cemented.

Here in Philadelphia, local organizations such as the Medical Society of Eastern Pennsylvania and the Alliance of Minority Physicians (of which I am a member) promote increasing and developing those underrepresented in medicine through scholarship, mentorship, and opportunities.

However, these efforts are not enough.

To promote diversity in medicine, we need political advocacy, locally and nationally, backing the importance of DEI initiatives in medicine. There also needs to be sustained diversity initiatives and financial support for these initiatives by medical institutions, health professionals, and health systems.

If we are truly dedicated to a more equitable health system, the EDUCATE Act must not pass. If we are truly dedicated to providing the best care for all patients, improving medical training, and ameliorating racial health disparities in the city and across the country, promoting diversity in medicine is a necessity, not a choice.

Ogechi Nwodim is an emergency medicine resident in West Philadelphia.