As October is Black History Month we wanted to raise awareness of some of the appropriate Library resources that you have access to.
Historically, it was difficult to get material that showed how diseases appear on patients with darker skin.
Some resources that aim to rectify this are:
VisualDX. The College subscribes to this clinical decision support software which is searchable by symptoms, signs and patient factors. You can use it to build up a patient specific differential and then use tens of thousands of images (including darker skin tones) to help comparison and diagnosis. To access it you will first need to register on a College networked computer. Once you have an account you will be able to download the free app from Google Play or The App Store.
Mind The Gap: a handbook of clinical signs in black and brown skin. This aim of this ebook is to educate students and allied health care professionals on the importance of recognising that certain clinical signs do not present the same on darker skin. It includes a photo for each disease and also highlights the different language that needs to be used in descriptors. It was developed by a staff/student partnership at St George’s University of London and they have now also created an online community called Hutano for black and brown people to discuss their skin health.
Skin of Color Society Dermatology Resources This website includes reading lists, videos, articles and other media to educate healthcare workers and patients on skins disorders, diseases and treatment options specific to skin of colour.
These resources are all listed under the ‘Clinical Examination and Clinical Skills’ tab on our subject support Resources page (which also lists all the other resources that we think are relevant for staff and students in the Faculty of Medicine.)
The medical libraries stock a number of books to help staff, students and our NHS users such as:
Pediatric dermatology in skin of color : a practical guide
Clinical Cases in Skin of Color: Adnexal, Inflammation, Infections, and Pigmentary Disorders
Ethnic Skin and Hair and Other Cultural Considerations
We also have titles that were recommended to use by Imperial College Healthcare Trust’s Race Equality Network. Charing Cross, Hammersmith and St Mary’s currently have Black History Month displays to highlight this stock.
