Thanks Jorge. I agree that assumptions can lead to differences in communication, which can result in disparities. Communication skills training can be one way to overcome with this, combined with training designed to help people recognize and overcome their biases/assumptions. In addition, this same mechanism can lead not just to differences in communication, but also to differences in treatment recommendations, as providers can think, for example, that certain types of patients "couldn't handle" or "wouldn't want" certain treatments.
Your examples around transportation and employment are a good example of how all the different layers of our socioecological model are interconnected.