Mapping out epistemic justice in the clinical space: using narrative techniques to affirm patients as knowers (26 October 2021)

Summary

Epistemic injustice sits at the intersection of ethics, epistemology, and social justice. Generally, this philosophical term describes when a person is wrongfully discredited as a knower; and within the clinical space, epistemic injustice is the underlying reason that some patient testimonies are valued above others. The following essay, published in Philosophy, Ethics, and Humanities in Medicine, seeks to connect patterns of social prejudice to the clinical realm in the United States: illustrating how factors such as race, gender identity, and socioeconomic status influence epistemic credence and associatively, the quality of healthcare a person receives.