The Use of Biased Language in the Care of Seriously Ill Children: A Pilot Study.
Terri Major-Kincade, Erin Kim, Cameron A Price and 6 others
PMID 40456187WHAT IT FOUND
In 63 charts of seriously ill children, no demographic link was found to biased language.
However, stigmatizing words appeared in 46% of records, often copied forward. Clinicians should replace subjective labels with objective descriptions of behavior or barriers.
Key findings
01Negative biased language was present in 46% of charts, but no significant demographic or clinical factors predicted its use.
02Physicians and social workers used more biased language than other team members, partly due to free-text documentation.
03Terms like 'non-compliant' were often copied forward from initial notes, amplifying bias without context.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
Small sample size (63 patients) from a single institution limits generalizability. The study counted word frequency but did not analyze the context or intent behind the language. The data was collected during the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have altered documentation practices. Physicians and social workers use free-text notes more often than nurses or therapists who use templates, potentially skewing the detection of biased language by discipline.
Declared interests
No conflicts of interest or funding sources were reported in the provided text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that biased language is absent because no demographic link was found. The primary outcome was null, but stigmatizing terms were present in nearly half the charts. The lack of statistical significance reflects the small sample size and the nature of the search, not the absence of the problem.