When searching online for information on skin care, individuals of color frequently receive results that don’t appropriately represent them. I can tell you from experience that it may be tremendously demoralizing.
Less than 6% of image-based search results show problems on skin of color, according to research from the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
Vaseline See My Skin
Together with partners at HUED, a digital health company dedicated to enhancing the quality of care for Black, Latinx, and Indigenous populations through education, access, and data, and VisualDx, a medical informatics company dedicated to reducing healthcare bias by enhancing clinical decisions through visualization, Vaseline is launching See My Skin to close that gap.
In joining forces, See My Skin was created as the only online database designed to search conditions on skin of color and connect people with the proper care they deserve.
Vaseline exists to give everyone healthy skin, including ensuring that everyone has access to skin health, as the original skin protectant that has been mending skin for over 150 years. However, if systematic racism affects medical standards and algorithmic searches and prevents some members of the Vaseline® community from receiving adequate representation or access to equal care, this cannot be accomplished.
The impact on people of color
“People of color are negatively impacted by healthcare inequities that can lead to worse health outcomes, including caring for their skin. Whether it’s looking for answers in search, on social media, or even in textbooks – the results that resemble their skin are scarce, which can leave us feeling unseen and underrepresented,” says Kevin Tolson, Brand Director of US Skincare at Unilever. “We created See My Skin so people with melanin-rich skin could finally see skin conditions on themselves. Our goal is to provide solutions that ensure communities are equipped to get the care that everyone deserves. This is a step in that direction.”
See My Skin educates users by presenting the outcomes of their skin issue searches as a resource for education. With a large network of board-certified dermatologists, See My Skin makes it easier for customers to receive unbiased, high-quality skin care through the search process. The platform also provides educational materials that offer professional advice on how to care for and monitor skin at home, recognize when to see a dermatologist for appropriate care, and ask the right questions when making an appointment. To consistently increase the representation of people with skin of color, the community is encouraged to upload photographs in addition to searching for resources.
All content on the platform is independently evaluated for accuracy and relevance by Vaseline’s Dermatology Review Board, including Dr. Mona Gohara, MD, FAAD, Dr. Uchenna Okereke, MD, FAAD, and Dr. Caroline Robinson, MD, FAAD. Founder of Tone Dermatology, Dr. Caroline Robinson, MD said, “I’m really excited to be a part of this work because this topic and this issue is something that I’m very passionate about. We need to move the needle on equitable care for all. Thinking about things from a patient perspective, it’s really difficult to recognize the lack of representation for skin of color. We are becoming a more and more diverse nation, and resources like textbooks and image databases need to evolve with the changing society.”
Broadening Our Equitable Skincare for All Efforts
Through Vaseline’s broader Equitable Skincare for All efforts, See My Skin helps contribute to our mission to create 15 million more equitable skincare experiences by 2025. Vaseline® continues to create change by focusing on three important areas: community resources, providing care access, and education for skincare professionals.
- Resources for Communities: To further meet the skin health needs for people of color with trusted resources and education, Vaseline® has evolved its partnership with HUED after launching a dermatologist finder tool in 2020. HUED is a first-of-its-kind healthcare technology startup and website that connects patients with medical professionals that specifically understand their cultural, physical, and mental health needs.
- Inclusive Imagery: Vaseline joined forces with VisualDX, a platform created by dermatologists, to help healthcare professionals accurately diagnose and treat patients of color. As an organization committed to reducing bias and disparities in medical knowledge by improving diagnosis in skin of color around the globe, VisualDx’s comprehensive database of images on the skin of color and its API help power See My Skin.
- Providing Access to Care: Vaseline continues providing access to care with Direct Relief, who has been an ongoing partner for over six years through The Vaseline® Healing Project. This partnership helps to support a network of nonprofit health centers and clinics that provide affordable and comprehensive services to those who need it most.
- Education for Skincare Professionals: In partnership with Medscape, the leading online global destination for physicians and healthcare professionals worldwide, Vaseline® has provided funding to support the development of continuing medical education to equip dermatologists and medical practitioners to treat better, diagnose and care for skin of color. These learning modules cover treatment for common skin conditions such as acne and scarring, seborrheic dermatitis, and atopic dermatitis specific to skin of color.
Visit www.seemyskin.com for resources to help find the right dermatologist to take care of your skin, and see how Vaseline is working towards equity in skincare at www.vaseline.com/
