Negligent by Design

“Negligent by Design is a major contribution to continuing efforts to acknowledge and rectify medical racism in its many forms, and to ensure that the field of medicine represents the most important principles of the long struggle for equality and justice.” —Angela Y. Davis“A searing exposé of how medicine perpetuates harm under the guise of care.”—UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK, MD, New York Times best-selling author of Legacy: A Black Physician Reckons with Racism in Medicine“Applying her twenty-five years as a physician and extensive research, Vanessa Grubbs, MD, powerfully reveals how racism is deeply embedded in the very design of American medicine. Both a bold critique and a call to action, Negligent by Design challenges readers—especially in the medical community—to confront long-denied truths and build a more equitable and inclusive future.”—DOROTHY ROBERTS, author of Fatal Invention and a 2024 MacArthur Fellow

Dr. Vanessa Grubbs is an internist, nephrologist, kidney donor, physician-scientist, and author of Hundreds of Interlaced Fingers- A Kidney Doctor’s Search for the Perfect Match. Dr. Grubbs is from Spring Lake, North Carolina. She is a Duke University undergraduate and medical school alum and completed her nephrology specialty training at UCSF, where she became a faculty member. While maintaining a clinical and research practice, she distinguished herself as a leading voice in nephrology, palliative care, and racial disparities. She left UCSF in 2019 but continues to publish in medical journals and speak at academic institutions. Currently, Dr. Grubbs is a part-time primary care physician and, in 2022, she founded Black Doc Village, a non-profit organization dedicated to actively advocating for Black trainees and physicians. She lives in Oakland, California with her husband, and recipient of her left kidney, Robert Phillips.