By Karlie Shatoff and Layla Roy
Chidiebere Ibe has become a sensation thanks to his revolutionary medical illustrations. After graduating with a degree in chemistry from University of Uyo, the twenty-five-year-old Nigerian medical student began working with Dr. Ulrick Sidney Kanmounye. While directing creative design at the Association of Future African Neurosurgeons, Ibe became interested in medical illustrations and spent a year learning to draw anatomy.
After studying with Dr. Kanmounye, Ibe noticed that medical illustrations nearly always portray white patients. Ibe then made it his mission to “change the status quo by portraying anatomy, physiology and pathology on the Black skin," he wrote in one of his Youtube videos.
Ibe turned to social media platforms, such as Instagram, Youtube, and Twitter, to spread awareness of his new illustrations. He started drawing skin conditions like Empyema Thoracis and Seborrheic Eczema on darker skin, conditions that are statistically more common in Black people, and posting them. In December 2021, his post depicting a Black fetus in the womb went viral, receiving 50,000 retweets on Twitter and 88,000 likes on Instagram. Many people shared that they had never seen an image of a Black fetus before Ibe’s posts, drawing attention to how prominent and overlooked medical racism is today. “I was just sticking up for what I believe in, advocating for equality in health through medical illustrations. I made a deliberate action to constantly advocate that there be inclusion of Black people in medical literature,” Ibe wrote.
Only 4.5% of images in medical textbooks depict dark skin, according to a study from the University of Pennsylvania. But why is diversity necessary in medicine? For one, many conditions appear differently depending on a person’s skin color. Ibe suggests that “misrepresentation leads to misdiagnosis.” His illustrations actively ensure that people of color are being accurately represented in the medical field, which will help improve healthcare for the Black community. Moreover, Ibe believes Black students are more engaged in learning from graphics that express their skin color. He hopes to aid in inspiring students of color to go into the medical field and use his passion to “fix the inequality.”
Chidiebere Ibe is now attending Kyiv Medical University in Ukraine and seeks to donate his illustrations to medical facilities and fundraise for students unable to afford their education. This past Black History Month brought to light many people like Ibe who are contributing so much to help overcome injustice and discrimination in all fields. Now that Black History Month is over, it is important to continue recognizing the accomplishments of amazing people of color. Ibe writes, “I believe everybody deserves to be seen…So this is a call to everybody that everyone should matter, and there should be health equality for everybody.”