IDOMED's 'Nigrum Corpus' diagnoses medical racism in a textbook — two Cannes Grands Prix

IDOMED, a Brazilian medical-education group, and Instituto Yduqs confronted a problem most hospitals would rather not name: racism in care. Brazilian data shows Black patients wait on average 10 minutes longer, get consultations 47% shorter, receive less access to imaging, and face a 6.7-day longer gap between diagnosis and surgery — while only 3% of the country's doctors are Black. Instead of a PSA, the institutions built teaching material.

With Artplan São Paulo they published 'Nigrum Corpus — Um estudo sobre racismo na medicina brasileira', a book that renames racist practices as 20 fictional clinical 'diseases' (such as Visio Alba Selectiva, selective white vision) drawn from 680 hours of real patient testimony. The design mixes anatomical illustrations with floral patterns celebrating Black beauty, and includes X-ray-simulating pages and dosage comparisons — so the book speaks the visual language of medicine while exposing its bias.

Alongside it, the Mediversidade program released the short film 'Corpo Preto', directed by Nany Oliveira, following a Black man seeking a diagnosis while professionals overlook him. The patient is deliberately blurred in frame — a visual metaphor for the invisibility imposed on Black patients. The film premiered on 1 April 2025 in a Rio cinema followed by a panel with experts, then spread through cinemas, influencer activations, lectures and OOH.

The book was distributed to medical schools nationwide, becoming teaching material in 32 universities by 2025 and adopted by 17 institutions by 2026, and reached Brazil's health minister. The work won the Cannes Lions 2025 Industry Craft Grand Prix, two Golds and a Bronze in Health & Wellness, and — a year later — the 2026 Glass: The Lion for Change Grand Prix, a rare second Grand Prix for the same project.