That consultant said this word...

[Ozwizard]

I went to the hospital to see my results from my consultant. Result of this is that I will have to have surgery that has a six to eight week recovery time. As he was explaining my condition he said that it is very common in " Negroid ladies"!!
The nurse in the room looked at me and shifted uncomfortably in her seat! And I took a second to register if he really did say that. Then I did a nervous laugh and said to him " you must not use that word" he said "what, that is what you are" " what is wrong with Negroid"? I said " stop, use another word". He said " oh I didn't know that Negroid would offend you"
Aibu that he should not have said that word?

(But if he is from elsewhere it doesn't make it OK - he'd need training on the issue)

What an odd thing to say. What is even worse is that he continued to use the term when you asked him to stop. Sounds like he needs some E&D retraining stat.

Good for you for speaking up!

Well, I'm with lovecat in that no doctor has ever used the term Caucasoid to me or about me in my hearing. They have said 'European' (to comment on risk etc), they have said 'white skin', (in relation to suspicious moles and Vit D deficiencies etc), they have said 'white women' but never Caucasoid. Similarly every appt I've ever attended with DCs, siblings, spouses.

YABU

at the comments alluding to racism and the usual nit picking hysteria. Seriously. Perhaps re-vist the definition for racism.
As much as I hate the term some people need to calm down and get a grip..... that would probably be you Yougotta

It might be accurate but it's not widely used and it doesn't sound right to me.

Caucasian and caucasoid are not the same thing. The first I hear sometimes, the second never. And I'm pretty sure that doctors around the country aren't referring to mongoloids.

Isn't it a bit like spastic? As far as I understand, was a technically accurate term that was used for unpleasant purposes and is no longer used because of the associations? Seems the same to me.

Let me clarify a bit for you then Superman and queiro.

If one is going to use anthropological terms, they should be used consistently for all groups, which clearly they aren't.

But even if they were, there are issues because;

Mongoloid is a word forever muddied (for the lay person) by its previous use for the condition now known as Down's Syndrome and the shameful attitude towards it in those times.

Similarly (again for the lay person) Negroid is uncomfortably close to 'Negro' and some seriously iffy history there.

So, overall, it is better to avoid M/N/C terms and go with something more modern and neutral, with no lingering whiff of nastiness or eugenics.

For exactly the same condition, fidel1ne, depletion of folate and megaloblastic anaemia with other concurrent complications, my consultant used caucasoid a few times.

Struck me as odd, very wordy, but, not wholly out of place in a clinical setting.

I never said that he was being racist. It just took me by surprise that the word was used as I have never been described as that before. Ok I let it ride the first time he said it but asked him not to use the word again. But he did twice after. It isn't my place to guide him to use a better terminology. He is an older man about late fiftys and maybe of Greek origin. He probably didn't do it in a malicious way but to him it was an appropriate medical term. Even the nurse was uncomfortable and she on the third time walked into a side room after rolling her eyes at him!!

Can't say I'd get worked up about this - it sounds like he was using an appropriate term to me.

I'm not sure that using "black" for example would have been accurate as, IME, black as it is used in day to day life is quite broad especially when you have issues such as the "one drop" theory which seems to still be fairly popular in some places - I remember reading an article where Halle Berry said she subscribed to it and so said her daughter was black as opposed to mixed race, even though her (daughter's) dad is white and Halle herself is mixed race (mother has English origins I think). So her daughter (just as an example) is probably referred to and refers to herself as being black but would she, or a similar person, meet the anthropological classification of Negroid which may have been what the doctor actually wanted to convey?

Looking at some of the anthropological definitions of Negroid, Caucasoid, Mongoloid then the definitions don't really include skin colour but instead focus on skull shape and so on. I think there are probably many people (especially of mixed race) who would be referred to as black in daily usage but who wouldn't actually necessarily meet the definition of negroid because whilst they have darker skin their features are more typically caucasoid?

If the term makes you uncomfortable it is fine to tell someone that and ask them to use another term, preferably suggesting a term you find more acceptable. However there is nothing wrong with negroid or negro. I think people have avoided them because of the offensive derivation. Caucasian is commonly used in medical circles, but I guess sometimes a little dumbing down is in order.

I think definitive statements like, 'You can't say that', rather than, 'That makes me uncomfortable' or 'I don't like that', just increases the confusion and discomfort many 'white' (especially middle class) people feel about race and racial issues. They're very anxious not to be seen as racist but are very nervous about the terminology, which to be fair, does change over time. I think the first statement shuts the conversation down in a negative way, while the second invites discussion and education.

and maybe of Greek origin

It's partly the use but mostly the keeping on using it that makes me call him racist. And I'll hazard a guess at sexist too, as I think he may have stopped had the op been male.

Nothing wrong with that comment Bubbles. A few people hazarded a guess that this was more likely to come from an ESL doctor who wasn't culturally British, or that it might be more likely from an older doctor so the OP gave her estimate of the doctor's background. It would be a staggeringly unlikely comment from a doctor who looked and sounded like David Cameron or Theresa May.

I think he was using the appropriate term in a medical and scientific sense and did not mean to offend.

BUT he was also being insensitive and a bit dim / ill-informed not to realise that the closeness of negroid to negro would make it fairly obviously a word that would raise eyebrows, and in some cases make people feel offended.

Plus there are other things he could say, people of African descent is one and the one I have heard most often in a medical context. So there's no need for it at all.

I also wonder if he was a teeny bit passive-aggressive/defensive saying "What is wrong with Negroid". I mean surely when you mentioned it he would realise. It sounds as if there's a bit of "I will use this term which I know might sound a bit dodgy to the uneducated non-medical person, and then act like I can't imagine what's wrong with it when they get upset". Consultants are famed for their arrogance - I know they aren't all arrogant, but it sounds like he was maybe showing off. He knew you might take exception, and then he could assert himself as in the right.

A sensitive consultant would have said "of African descent" in order to make sure you felt respected.

Yes, the NHS is racist by testing specific groups for specific problems. Lets' ignore possible disorders linked to race/ ethnicity to be politically correct, shall we. That will solve ALL the racist issues and insults.

That poor doctor cannot win, whatever word he would have chosen would have caused offence to somebody. Very soon, it will become highly offensive to use the word "lady" or "female" to speak about a human being.

OP, YABU! What word should he have used?

White people do not experience racism. They experience twattishness sometimes, like anyone, but not racism because whiteness carries privilege.

And I'll hazard a guess at sexist too, as I think he may have stopped had the op been male.

Guess at what you like. Wouldn't make it true.

OP, YABU! What word should he have used?

People of African descent.

It well-known that different ethic / genetic groups have different tendencies to disease and different risks and of course it's not racist to have an awareness of that.

*necessarily true

White people experience racism too..... ffs

No, white people don't experience racism. Whilst a black person could be as prejudiced as a white person, sadly they don't hold the historic background of privilege and power, and quite frequently still don't experience these equally today unfortunately, that would allow them to oppress.

Whilst it may be the correct anthropological term, it's not a commonly used word now for many good reasons, and isn't even used in all anthropological communities any more. And the classification of 'Negroid' has very little to do with skin colour, more to do with things like skull shape.

More than that, whatever the word was, you made it clear you were offended, and he continued to use it. It could have been any word, but if it is relating to you, then anyone in charge of your care should respect your wishes.

Also agree with PP who said about MC being referred to as 'spontaneous abortion'. I had that as well, and it felt like I'd been slapped. Again, whilst it might have been the correct medical term, it wasn't the correct term to use in that situation, and neither was this.

Hope you're okay OP. x

The white privilege on this thread is shocking.

I've asked my friend who is an operating theatre nurse and she said it would depend on the nationality of the consultant. She works alongside consultants of all nationalities and how they speak to/treat the nurses varies greatly. Some nationalities are far more respectful towards the nurses and women in general than others. She also feels some nationalities would consider that terminology acceptable although if you clearly asked for that term not to be used they shouldn't have used it again.