# Discrimination Experiences Among Medical Students

## TL;DR

Medical students with disabilities who are Asian, Black, or Hispanic women face higher rates of general and race-based discrimination, while White and Asian women with disabilities face more gender-based discrimination.

## Contribution

This study reveals how intersecting identities affect discrimination experiences among medical students with disabilities.

## Key findings

- Asian, Black, and Hispanic female students with disabilities reported higher general and race-based discrimination than White male students without disabilities.
- White and Asian female students with disabilities experienced the highest risk of gender-based discrimination.
- Students with disabilities faced higher overall discrimination rates compared to their peers without disabilities.

## Abstract

What is the association of general, gender-based, and race-based discrimination with students’ disability status, sex, race, and ethnicity during medical school?

Among 45 705 graduating medical students in this cross-sectional study, Asian, Black, and Hispanic female students with disability were more likely to report general and race-based discrimination than White male students without disability. White and Asian female students with disability were more likely to report gender-based discrimination than White male students without disability.

These findings suggest that students with disabilities with intersecting identities experience different types of discrimination based on race, ethnicity, and sex, emphasizing the importance of addressing multiple, overlapping forms of discrimination in medical education.

This cross-sectional study examines the association of general, gender-based, and race-based discrimination with disability status, sex, and race and ethnicity among medical students in the US.

Previous research has documented the prevalence of discrimination based on race, ethnicity, sex, and sexual orientation among medical students; however, discrimination experienced by medical students with disabilities, and the impact of intersecting identities on these experiences, remains underexplored.

To examine the association of general, gender-based, and race-based discrimination with disability status, sex, race, and ethnicity during medical school.

This cross-sectional study surveyed graduating medical students in US accredited MD-granting medical schools from 2020 to 2022. Analyses were conducted from October to November 2024.

Modified Poisson regression was used to estimate the relative risk of disability status, sex, race, and ethnicity with self-reported experiences of general, gender-based, and race-based discrimination and the intersection of disability status, sex, race, and ethnicity.

Among 45 705 graduating medical students, 3863 (8.5%) reported having a disability; 24 163 (52.9%) identified as female; and 10 100 (22.1%) identified as Asian, 2661 (5.8%) as Black, 4524 (9.9%) as Hispanic, 25 154 (55.0%) as White, and 3266 (7.1%) as other race or ethnicity. Medical students with disability (MSWD) were more likely than their peers without disability to report general discrimination (relative risk [RR], 1.57; 95% CI, 1.50-1.65), gender-based discrimination (RR, 1.64; 95% CI, 1.57-1.72), race-based discrimination (RR, 1.55; 95% CI, 1.44-1.67), and multiple types of discrimination (RR, 1.82; 95% CI, 1.71-1.91). Asian, Black, and Hispanic female MSWD were more likely to report general and race-based discrimination than their White male peers without disability, with the prevalence of general, gender-based, and race-based discrimination among female Asian, Black, and Hispanic MSWD being greater than 25%. Compared with White male students without disability, Asian and Black female MSWD reported the highest risk of general discrimination (Asian: RR, 2.40; 95% CI, 2.09-2.77; Black: RR, 2.58; 95% CI, 2.17-3.06). White and Asian female MSWD reported the highest risk of gender-based discrimination (White: RR, 4.65; 95% CI, 4.30-5.04; Asian: RR, 4.41; 95% CI, 3.85-5.05). Asian and Black female MSWD reported the highest risk of race-based discrimination (Asian: RR, 8.53; 95% CI, 7.26-10.01; Black: RR, 12.48; 95% CI, 10.76-14.47). Finally, Asian and Black female MSWD reported the highest risk of multiple types of discrimination (Asian: RR, 6.50; 95% CI, 5.63-7.52; Black: RR, 7.21; 95% CI, 6.10-8.52).

In this cross-sectional study of US medical students, Asian, Black, and Hispanic female MSWD were more likely to report general and race-based discrimination, whereas White and Asian female MSWD were more likely to report gender-based discrimination during medical school. These findings highlight the need to address intersecting forms of discrimination for medical students with disabilities.