Racial and ethnic disparities in health and health care: An assessment and analysis of the awareness and perceptions of public health workers implementing a statewide community transformation grant in Texas

Introduction Little is known about the awareness of public health professionals regarding racial and ethnic disparities in health in the United States of America (USA). Our study objective was to assess the awareness and perceptions of a group of public health workers in Texas regarding racial health disparities and their chief contributing causes. Methods We surveyed public health professionals working on a statewide grant in Texas, who were participants at health disparities’ training workshops. Multivariable logistic regression was employed in examining the association between the participants’ characteristics and their perceptions of the social determinants of health as principal causes of health disparities. Results There were 106 respondents, of whom 38 and 35% worked in health departments and non-profit organizations, respectively. The racial/ethnic groups with the highest incidence of HIV/AIDS and hypertension were correctly identified by 63 and 50% of respondents, respectively, but only 17, and 32% were knowledgeable regarding diabetes and cancer, respectively. Seventy-one percent of respondents perceived that health disparities are driven by the major axes of the social determinants of health. Exposure to information about racial/ethnic health disparities within the prior year was associated with a higher odds of perceiving that social determinants of health were causes of health disparities (OR 9.62; 95% CI 2.77, 33.41). Conclusion Among public health workers, recent exposure to information regarding health disparities may be associated with their perceptions of health disparities. Further research is needed to investigate the impact of such exposure on their long-term perception of disparities, as well as the equity of services and programs they administer.