Jessie Sleet Scales (1875-1950), did pioneering work in the Black community in New York City. She visited homes to care for patients suffering from tuberculosis and expose the socio-economic conditions that led Black people to die from this preventable disease in alarming numbers. She graduated from Provident Hospital Nurse Training School in Chicago in 1895 and then enrolled in a graduate training course at Freedmen's Hospital in Washington D.C. She eventually moved to New York City, determined to work as a "district nurse," in the Black community.
Despite being refused employment at several agencies because of her race, Sleet Scales persisted and was eventually hired by the Tuberculosis Committee of the Charity Organization Society, though only on a two-month probationary basis. Sleet Scales soon proved her worth and remained with the organization until she married in 1909. A researcher and practitioner, Sleet Scales keenly understood the importance of social determinants of health and culturally responsive healthcare. In her reports, she notes how Black people's housing and employment conditions had a direct impact on their health. She endeavored to address these issues, building connections in communities and even securing jobs for some patients.1 |