Inequality and Men’s Health - Prof Derek Griffith

Across the globe, men tend to have a lower life expectancy than women. Although there are still significant challenges facing women’s health, on issues ranging from cancer to suicide, men are faring badly. However, a closer look reveals that this picture varies significantly across different groups of men. Why is that? What role does masculinity play in shaping health inequities among men, and their experience of illnesses like prostate cancer? For Men’s Health Week 2024, we speak to Professor Derek Griffith about why an intersectional approach, which addresses issues such as economic inequality and structural racism, is vital to engaging with men and boys about their health and wellbeing.

Derek is a Founding Co-Director of the Racial Justice Institute and Founder and Director of the Center for Men’s Health Equity at Georgetown University (Washginton, DC, United States), where he is a Professor of Health Management and Policy and Oncology. He also serves as the Chair of Global Action on Men’s Health, a global men’s health advocacy organisation. 

Find out more about Derek’s work: https://gufaculty360.georgetown.edu/s/contact/0031Q00002J74ovQAB/derek-griffith

• Follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/DrDMGriffith
• Follow him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/derekmgriffith/
• Global Action on Men’s Health: https://gamh.org
• Center for Men’s Health Equity, Georgetown University: https://cmhe.georgetown.edu

Episode timeline:

• Intro (00:00-01:28)
• Men’s Health Week and why it matters (01:28-02:34)
• Why an intersectional understanding of men’s wellbeing is needed (02:34-04:45)
• How health inequities manifest themselves in the US (04:45-06:01)
• The consequences of structural racism (06:01-09:35)
• The influence of masculinity on different groups of men (09:35-12:27)
• Understanding Black American manhood (12:27-15:10)
• Risk-taking (15:10-16:34)
• Men’s poor take-up of health services (16:34-19:52)
• Making healthcare more accessible (19:52-22:53)
• The costs of healthcare in the US (22:53-26:00)
• Break (26:00-26:07)
• Lack of discussion of men’s mental health in global policies (26:07-28:03)
• Men’s vulnerability and looking beyond individual explanations (28:03-30:13)
• What policy changes are needed (30:13-32:07)
• Masculinity and prostate cancer (32:07-40:10)
• Other forms of cancer experienced by men (40:10-42:09)
• Discomfort among male doctors (42:09-43:43)
• How we can engage with marginalised men and boys about their wellbeing (43:43-48:05)
• Fatherhood and (self)care (48:05-51:56)
• Conclusion (The structural dynamics of masculinity; The role of social class; ‘Dying of whiteness’; Relationships and women’s positive impact; Prostate cancer) (51:56-59:34)

More info:

• Syndemics: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syndemic
• Tony Coles - ‘mosaic masculinity’: https://doi.org/10.1177/1440783308092882
• Tony Whitehead - Jamaican and African-American men, reputation and respectability: https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.93.6.1050
• Steve Robertson - the ‘don’t care, should care’ dichotomy: https://doi.org/10.1177/1363459306061787
• Roland Thorpe - the cost of men’s health inequities: https://publichealth.jhu.edu/2014/health-disparities-among-us-african-american-and-hispanic-men-cost-economy-more-than-450-billion-over-four-years
• Jonathan Metzl - ‘dying of whiteness’: https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/jonathan-m-metzl/dying-of-whiteness/9781541644960/?lens=basic-books
• Global Action on Men's Health reports on cancer: https://gamh.org/cancer-charter/
• And mental health: https://gamh.org/absent-minded/