Provider Feature: Dr. Hope Taitt

In honor of Black History Month, we’re proud to feature Dr. Hope Taitt, MD! Dr. Taitt joined PAGNY in July 2022 as the Emergency Department Administrative Fellow, and was recently promoted to Director of Quality and Patient Safety, Department of Emergency Medicine, at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County.

This year's theme for Black History Month is "African Americans and the Arts," aimed to showcase the contributions Black Americans have made to American literature, performing and visual arts, and music. This week, we interviewed Dr. Taitt to learn more about what Black History Month and Black American artists mean to her.

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PAGNY: What does Black History Month mean to you?

Dr. Taitt: Black History Month is a time to celebrate my culture and honor the achievements of African Americans. It is also a time to reflect and share with others the contributions African Americans have made.

PAGNY: How does your culture or identity impact your work?

Dr. Taitt: My goal as an emergency medicine physician is to provide equitable, compassionate care for the patients in my community. As an American of Caribbean descent, I am able to use my experiences to relate to my patients and provide them with meaningful recommendations. As an administrator, my perspective has helped provide others with insight as we develop strategies to care for the community we serve.

PAGNY: What Black American artists have made the biggest impact on your life?

Dr. Taitt: One Black American poet that has been inspirational to me more recently has been Amanda Gorman. At the age of 22 she was the youngest poet to read at a presidential inauguration. In addition to this significant accomplishment, she successfully crafted a poem that was a call to unity for the entire nation.

One striking quote from this poem is:

This quote impressed upon me that I have the responsibility to recognize the possibilities around me and the responsibility to take initiative and be the change I would like to see in the world. As a physician in leadership serving my community, I find this quote both inspiring and motivating as I aim to be both a resource for others and an agent for change.