Uché Blackstock, MD, Brooklyn, NY (2026)

04/28/2026

The bike to no where. You saved me. This week, I hit 1,000 rides on my bike. I didn’t even realize it I’ve had it since November 2020 if you all can remember November 2020 we were living in hell and getting this bike literally saved me. I was of course stealing with what everyone else was dealing with during the pandemic, also seeing patients feeling really scared, trying to build my business, and going through a divorce. This Baik saved me. It made me feel strong. It made me happy. It made me feel like I was part of a community.

04/27/2026

Still thinking about the 2026 Trust Barometer Health report.

7 in 10 people globally believe at least one misleading health claim, including that fluoride in water is harmful or that vaccines are used for population control.

And yet, people still deeply trust clinicians, especially for diagnosis and treatment.

That tension matters.

This isn’t just about education. It’s about trust, access, and how people experience the healthcare system.

04/25/2026

Hot take: Patients using ChatGPT or social media for health information isn’t the problem.

The problem is that healthcare is often too rushed, confusing, inaccessible, and expensive for people to feel fully supported inside the system.

So people go elsewhere.

They’re not replacing clinicians. They’re trying to fill gaps, make sense of what they’re experiencing, and feel more informed.

Instead of judging that behavior, we need to understand it and design systems that actually support people in the ways they need.

04/24/2026

So grateful to be part of Wednesday’s conversation with on health and trust.

One thing that feels especially important: clinicians remain highly trusted, but people are also navigating health information through AI, social media, peers, family, and community voices.

The 2026 Edelman Trust and Health report found that:

• 70% of people globally believe at least one divisive health claim
• Confidence in making informed health decisions dropped 10 points in one year
• 63% say their country is divided on health and healthcare issues
• Trust in media on health information remains below pre-COVID levels

For me, this comes back to something I shared during the panel:

“Trust is built through experience, not just information.”

That means we need less judgment and more dialogue. Less information delivery and more information exchange. And more systems designed to meet people where they actually are.

You can find the full report at edelman.com/trust.

04/23/2026

✨✨I wrote this piece in this week because this is something I’ve been thinking about for a long time, both as a physician and as someone who understands how deeply personal hair is in our communities.

Hair braiding is often seen as a safe, protective style. And in many ways, it is. But what we don’t talk about enough are the potential exposures that can come with certain synthetic and even human hair products.

Independent testing has found chemicals like benzene, lead, and phthalates in some braiding hair, substances linked to cancer and endocrine disruption.

This doesn’t mean braiding itself is unsafe. Health is more complex than that. But repeated exposure over time, especially without transparency, is something we shouldn’t ignore.

And one more thing that may surprise people: “human hair” isn’t automatically safer. Many products are processed in ways that aren’t clearly disclosed.

So what can you do right now?

• Wash braiding hair before installation
• Make sure the space is well ventilated
• Avoid burning ends when possible
• Ask brands and stylists about ingredients and testing
• Pay attention to your body. Headaches, irritation, or trouble breathing are signals to pause

And here are a few questions you can ask your stylist:

• Do you notice strong chemical smells with certain brands?
• Can we work in a well-ventilated space?
• Are there brands you trust that are more transparent?

We deserve both beauty and safety. And we deserve transparency so we can make informed choices.

Link in bio to read the full piece.

04/22/2026

Today I had the honor of giving the plenary at the American Association of Medical Colleges () Joint Meeting for the Group on Faculty Affairs, Group on Business Affairs, and Group on Institutional Planning.

I spoke about trust, not as an abstract idea, but as something people feel and something institutions build or erode every day.

I started with my mother, because some of my earliest lessons about trust didn’t come from a textbook. They came from watching her move through the world as a physician, seeing how patients greeted her, how deeply she listened, and what it meant to be fully present with the person in front of her.

From there, I talked about what so many of us inherit in medicine and academic health systems: structures, assumptions, and histories that are often treated as fixed, even though they were designed. And if they were designed, they can be redesigned.

I also talked about the cost of misplaced trust, what happens when systems teach us to question patients instead of listening to them, and why trust isn’t soft or secondary. Trust is infrastructure.

For those leading in faculty affairs, business affairs, and institutional planning, that matters deeply. The decisions leaders make about what to measure, what to reward, and who to invest in shape whether an institution is actually worthy of trust.

I left the room with the same question I brought into it: What kind of future are we building?

Grateful to everyone who was in the room and helped make the conversation such a thoughtful one.

04/21/2026

I can’t stop thinking about how the media and police keep using the expression a “domestic disturbance.”

I keep coming back to “domestic disturbance” because it feels so profoundly inadequate for the kind of violence it’s often trying to describe. The language makes something devastating and horrific sound contained, almost routine, when what we’re often witnessing is abuse, coercion, control, and in too many cases, the destruction of entire families.

What’s made it even harder to sit with is that so much of this has unfolded around Black Maternal Health Week, a week when we are supposed to be lifting up the urgent reality that Black women and Black children are already failed by this country in so many ways, especially when it comes to care, safety, and survival. To be holding that truth while also witnessing this violence has felt like another painful reminder that these aren’t separate issues.

This isn’t just about the words we use, although those words do matter. It’s also about how we choose to understand this violence, how we respond to it, and what we’re willing to change if we truly want to prevent it. Because this isn’t simply an individual or family issue. It’s a systemic issue, shaped by patriarchy, power, and control.

Black women and children deserve more than our grief after the fact. They deserve to be protected while there’s still time.

04/21/2026

✨TOMORROW, Wednesday, April 22 from 11 AM to 12 PM ET, I’ll be in conversation with an incredible group of panelists, and I’m hopeful we’ll get into some of the questions that matter most right now.

Join us in this virtual conversation for the launch of the 2026 Trust Barometer Special Report: Trust and Health.

Trust sits at the center of so much in healthcare: how people make decisions, who they listen to, what they believe is possible, and whether they feel seen, respected, and safe.

I’m especially looking forward to discussing what this year’s report reveals about the changing information landscape, the enduring trust people place in clinicians, and what it really takes to build trust in a time of confusion, fragmentation, and overload.

Registration link in bio/stories.

04/21/2026

✨TOMORROW, Wednesday, April 22 from 11 AM to 12 PM ET, I’ll be in conversation with an incredible group of panelists, and I’m hopeful we’ll get into some of the questions that matter most right now.

Join us in this virtual conversation for the launch of the 2026 Trust Barometer Special Report: Trust and Health.

Trust sits at the center of so much in healthcare: how people make decisions, who they listen to, what they believe is possible, and whether they feel seen, respected, and safe.

I’m especially looking forward to discussing what this year’s report reveals about the changing information landscape, the enduring trust people place in clinicians, and what it really takes to build trust in a time of confusion, fragmentation, and overload.

Registration link in bio/stories.

HealthEquity

04/21/2026

✨TOMORROW, Wednesday, April 22 from 11 AM to 12 PM ET, I’ll be in conversation with an incredible group of panelists, and I’m hopeful we’ll get into some of the questions that matter most right now.

Join us in this virtual conversation for the launch of the 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Trust and Health.

Trust sits at the center of so much in healthcare: how people make decisions, who they listen to, what they believe is possible, and whether they feel seen, respected, and safe. I’m especially looking forward to discussing what this year’s report reveals about the changing information landscape, the enduring trust people place in clinicians, and what it really takes to build trust in a time of confusion, fragmentation, and overload.

Registration link in bio/stories.

04/20/2026

I’m excited to share the launch of the AHE Advancement Fund, a fiscally sponsored 501(c)(3) created to support bold, future-facing work that meets this moment.

Through the Fund, we’re inviting philanthropic partners to support three initiatives we’re actively building:

✨ Community-informed AI governance in healthcare
✨ Catalyst, a leadership and community platform for people advancing health equity
✨ Access to Care Initiative, focused on addressing structural barriers to care

Each of these efforts reflects what I believe deeply: that advancing health equity requires trust, imagination, community, and systems-level change.

I’m proud of what we’re building and would love to connect with funders and philanthropic partners who share this vision.

Uché Blackstock, MD

04/28/2026

04/27/2026

04/25/2026

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04/23/2026

04/22/2026

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