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L
et me tell you why Black
patients should have
access to more Black doc-
tors. Last June, I underwent sur-
gery to remove osteomata
(benign tumors) from my fore-
head and a portion of my nose.
I'd previously undergone surgery
to have similar growths removed,
but they had returned in locations
where excision would be more
challenging. Before undergoing
the procedure, I consulted with
several white male surgeons, who
told me they would need to open
an incision from ear to ear. I
didn't feel comfortable with that
option, especially because I was
planning on getting married soon
and didn't want the scars to ruin
the day. My frustration mounted,
and I decided to put off the sur-
gery until after the wedding.
When I resumed my search for
a surgeon, I noticed a new physi-
cian in town: Jewel Greywoode,
MD, an otolaryngologist at
Charlotte Eye, Ear, Nose and
Throat Associates. He's Black,
which, honestly, was an initial
draw. Here was a surgeon who
looked like me, who I thought
would understand my needs in a
way the previous white surgeons
could not.
My intuition proved correct — I
felt an immediate connection with
Dr. Greywoode. I told him what
the other surgeons had recom-
mended, and he said my hair would never grow
back over such a severe incision. He instead offered
a more minimally invasive approach — three small
incisions behind my hairline that would be unseen
after my hair grew back, which he assured me it
would. I didn't have to tell him that preserving my
Much More Than a Kind Gesture
A cultural connection with my surgeon meant everything to me.
Diversity, Equality and Inclusion
India Marshall
POWERFUL CONNECTION India Marshall found a surgeon who immediately understood the importance of preserving her
natural hair.
