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Medical Student Fights for Skin Tone Diversity in Training Materials

A shocking gap in medical education leaves future doctors unprepared. How one student's mission could transform healthcare for patients of color.

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The image shows a collage of six people smiling, with the text "The future of health begins with...
The image shows a collage of six people smiling, with the text "The future of health begins with you" written across the top. The people in the image are of different ages, genders, and ethnicities, suggesting that the future of healthcare is uncertain and uncertain.

Medical Student Fights for Skin Tone Diversity in Training Materials

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This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Mr. Chafor Anslem, a 5th-year medical student at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Bamenda, Cameroon. He is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA's view on the topic, nor The European Sting's one.

When we think of innovation in global health, we often imagine new medicines, technologies, or surgical techniques. Yet one of the most overlooked innovations lies in how knowledge is communicated. For decades, medical illustration, a vital tool for teaching and patient education, has failed to represent the diversity of the patients it serves.

The numbers reveal the gap. A 2018 review of over 4,100 textbook images found only 4.5% depicted dark skin, while just 18% of medical images in the New England Journal of Medicine featured non-white patients. Another study analyzing 5,001 anatomical illustrations across leading atlases reported that only 1.6% showed dark skin tones, despite the diversity of real populations. The consequences are not academic alone: research shows 62% of healthcare providers misdiagnosed melanoma on Black skin, compared to 13% on white skin. These disparities highlight how the absence of inclusive visuals directly affects diagnosis, patient trust, and health outcomes.

This is the problem my work seeks to address. As a young Black medical illustrator, my innovation is to reimagine how medical knowledge is represented and shared. Through accurate, culturally inclusive illustrations, I create visuals that reflect Black and African populations ensuring learners and practitioners see a fuller picture of humanity in their education.

This work is not only about identity, but also about equity. Inclusive illustrations help medical students learn with greater accuracy, reduce unconscious bias, and improve cultural competence. For patients, especially in rural or underserved areas, clear and representative visuals transcend language barriers, making it easier to understand conditions, treatments, and preventive measures. By designing resources that mirror real communities, I aim to strengthen health literacy and empower individuals to engage in their own care.

The impact of this youth-led innovation extends globally. In our digital age, medical illustrations travel far beyond classrooms. They connect learners in Cameroon with peers in Europe and the Americas, enrich international medical curricula, and foster collaboration across borders. By addressing the representation gap in medical illustration, I am not only telling new stories but also reshaping the way global health education is experienced.

As medical students, we are more than future doctors; we are educators, advocates, and innovators. Through initiatives like inclusive medical illustration, we can ensure that future generations inherit a medical system that is more representative, empathetic, and just. Empowering global health means empowering everyone to see themselves in the story of medicine.

References

  1. Louie, P., & Wilkes, R. (2018). Representations of race and skin tone in medical textbook imagery. Social Science & Medicine, 202, 38-42. PubMed
  2. Moxham, B. J., et al. (2016). The depiction of race and ethnicity in human anatomy textbooks. Anatomical Sciences Education, 9(5), 468-474. Wiley Online Library
  3. Johnson & Johnson. (2021). Helping bring diversity in medical education imagery. jnj.com

About the author

Chafor Anslem is a 5th-year medical student at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Bamenda, Cameroon, and a Black medical illustrator dedicated to advancing equity in global health through inclusive visual communication. His work focuses on creating medical illustrations that represent Black and African populations, addressing long-standing gaps in representation within medical education. Through this innovation, he promotes diversity, accuracy, and cultural competence in healthcare training while improving health literacy in communities. Anslem also serves as Vice President for Public Relations and Communication of the Cameroon Medical Students' Association (CAMSA), championing youth-led leadership, collaboration, and visibility.

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