By Helen G. Hui-Chou, MD, FACS

“Does your family own a restaurant?” 
“Nope,” but being one of a very few Asian families in growing up in York, Pennsylvania, that is the assumption. But is that just the ignorance of teenagers? This was 1991.

“Are you married to an Officer?” 
“Nope, I am the Naval Officer, a Lieutenant actually.” But being a woman at the Navy Exchange store leads all to think I am shopping for my officer husband. But is that just the ignorance of uneducated retail workers? This was 2001.

“You’re Korean, when were you adopted?” A senior resident asked an intern during rounds. I was told to be less sensitive when I attempted to address this senior resident’s dialogue with my program director. “He was joking.” This was 2012.

“Are you married to a graduating Chief resident?”
“Nope.” But this was not the start of my Plastic Surgery residency graduation dinner I had expected. “No, I am the only woman graduating Plastic Surgery Chief resident tonight.” This was in 2014.

“I would not answer a question of my race because I feel potential employers will use that against me for consideration of a position.” I couldn’t fathom that a hand surgery colleague felt this way in 2020.

“Where are you from?” Well, that is not an easy answer. 
“What exactly are you asking for?” I will often ask for clarification. Born of Chinese parents who were educated in the UK, I am a UK citizen by birth. Raised between Taiwan and Hong Kong, I am an immigrant to the US. When I was 5 years old I learned English in kindergarten. I have lived in NY, NJ, PA, MD, NC, DC, and HI. Most recently I lived and worked in Hawaii, where I have felt most welcomed and included in the society, even as an extreme “Haulie” immigrant to the island community.   

These gender and race biased assumptions often cause feelings of being marginalized, underestimated, and devalued. Bias and racism can come in many forms from people of differing backgrounds. Often, people are unaware of how it makes others feel to be questioned and segregated in this manner, even if only by their words.

Why are Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusivity important for us as Hand Surgeons? Our patients are of differing educational, racial, gender, and social backgrounds. Empathy for our patients must derive from some understanding and acceptance of these differences. Studies have shown that diversity in health care providers improves patient outcomes.

Our hand surgery colleagues can also be from these diverse backgrounds, but finding inclusion and acceptance from peers that do not look like you can be elusive. There is nothing more demoralizing that hearing from someone you admire how differently they perceive you.

If we do not begin to support, value, and advance our hand surgery colleagues that look different or come from different backgrounds, it will be very difficult to have a Hand Society that is made up of sufficient diversity to serve our patients and to avoid loss of our current minimal numbers of diverse members. It’s time to do better. It’s time to be better.