On Tuesday, December 10th, over 100 members of the UA College of Medicine (COM) community came out in force to explore diversity matters. Participants enjoyed an evening focused on facilitating not just candid conversation and exploration of issues, but also forming partnerships around diversity initiatives.
The interactive and anonymous poll technology facilitated by Dr. Karen Spear Ellinwood, of the Office of Medical Student Education encouraged frank comments in a room top-heavy with administrators ready to listen. As a follow up, Dr. Moreno and Dr. Wright will host a Diversity Matters…discussion, on March 6th, from 12-1:30, at the Kiewit auditorium. They will provide an overview of the key discussion points, and how these will inform the larger vision and strategic planning currently underway.
Dr. Joe "Skip" Garcia, senior vice president, Health Sciences; Dr. Steve Goldschmid, dean, College of Medicine; Dr. Lori Alvord, associate dean for Student Affairs and Admission; Dr. Anne Wright, senior associate dean, Faculty Affairs; Dr. Francisco Moreno, deputy dean of Diversity and Inclusion, took turns fielding questions and providing their perspectives on the various dimensions of diversity and how we must work together for the best results.
The event provided a venue for faculty, staff, and community members to voice their concerns and ideas about the state of diversity at the COM. Participants and COM leadership agreed that diversity is important and must be seen as central to excellence. In addition, pipeline development and increasing the diversity of the medical school student body were topics of particular interest. While this is only the beginning of a larger conversation, the information collected will provide the seeds for the path forward.
Participants also agreed that sensitivity and competence in cultural, ethnic, religious, historical, language, physical abilities and gender preference differences are important in medical practice and perspective. Issues related to populations within close proximity to the COM including Native American, and Mexican Americans are also perceived as important. Participants asked for data and trends with regards to the diversity of the COM.
Dr. Moreno, deputy dean of the Office of Diversity and Inclusion stated, ‘Commitment to diversity is essential to the successful attainment of the UA COM mission to promote health for all the people of Arizona and beyond, through education, research and patient care.’ The Diversity Matters series beginning in spring 2014 will continue to facilitate college-wide conversations and understanding of issues of diversity in medicine. For more information contact: Sofia Ramos, Ph.D., M.B.A., administrator of leadership development at the Office of Diversity and Inclusion at sramos@medadmin.arizona.edu or 520-626-2490.