The Importance of Synchronicity for Remedying Health Inequities

The past two years were filled with an unimaginable amount of chaos, stress, and uncertainty for the future. The COVID-19 pandemic alone turned the world upside down; this, coupled with the ongoing and widespread stigmatization of marginalized groups, created much disjointment throughout the world and within various communities. The need for powerful entities working for good to enter into alignment with one another, or SYNC up, has never been more urgent.

SYNChronicity 2021, the 8th Annual National Conference for HIV, HCV, STI, and LGBTQ Health, took place on Sept. 21 and Sept. 22 and took aim at addressing a healthcare field that is out of sync. At SYNC 2021, our nation’s public health leaders, service providers, and community organizers spoke on the various ways in which different sectors of society can come together to end the epidemics that impact underserved communities. Among these sectors are entities such as federal and state governments, health service providers, and transgender and LGBTQ health equity advocates, among others. Through each plenary, session, institute, and poster viewing, attendees were given the opportunity to hear nuanced, well-researched perspectives on solutions to ending various epidemics, while engaging with speakers through live Q&As. Despite this conference taking place in a virtual setting, a large emphasis was placed on cultivating connectivity to audiences behind the screen. 

The importance of synchronicity aligns itself closely with Kimberlé Crenshaw’s theory on intersectionality, which states that various identities and social categorizations often coincide, consolidating an overlapping yet unique experience with prejudice and discrimination. Synchronicity relates to intersectionality in the sense that syncing, too, entails the coalescence of various factors and entities to create a unique experience. The difference is, where intersectionality serves as an explanation for these occurrences, synchronization serves as a potential solution. 

As a proponent of this idea, I was extremely excited to enter the sessions of SYNC 2021, particularly those that addressed the nuances of uplifting diverse identities. The session on Black women’s health equity, for example, addressed the struggles that Black women face in receiving proper treatment in healthcare facilities. Social determinants such as socioeconomic status, age, and geographic location tend to negatively impact the quality of care that Black women receive, with 39% of respondents reporting that they were treated rudely by staff.