{"id":1031,"date":"2022-04-01T15:22:31","date_gmt":"2022-04-01T19:22:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/medicine\/?page_id=1031"},"modified":"2023-06-06T15:44:32","modified_gmt":"2023-06-06T19:44:32","slug":"diversity-equity-and-inclusion","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/health.uconn.edu\/medicine\/about-us\/diversity-equity-and-inclusion\/","title":{"rendered":"Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Department of Medicine Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee acknowledges the legacy of slavery, discrimination, segregation, and marginalization of multiple minority\/minoritized groups, including Native Americans, African Americans, Hispanics\/Latinx, women, the LGTBQ community, persons with disabilities, persons living in poverty, and others. This legacy has resulted in persistent underrepresentation of these groups and a disproportionate distribution of power and influence within Medicine. The events of 2020, including the health disparities exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the high-profile killings of several African American citizens has highlighted the need for diversity efforts in all spheres of American life. The public holds medical personnel in high esteem and the American public rightfully expects the highest standards of ethical behavior of our profession. This expectation extends to a commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusiveness in all aspects of our department, including among faculty, residents, staff, students, and trainees.<\/p>\n

Mission<\/h2>\n

We aim to create a culture and to promote processes that advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in the UConn Health Department of Medicine.<\/p>\n

We recognize that these are fundamental qualities to fulfill our mission to provide fair, equitable and cutting-edge patient care while advancing medical education, developing scientific knowledge and creating a nurturing environment for training in clinical care and bio-medical research.<\/p>\n

Our Goals<\/h2>\n
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  1. Mitigating implicit bias among faculty, staff and trainees working in the department.<\/li>\n
  2. Recruiting, hiring, and retaining excellent faculty and staff of diverse and\/or underrepresented backgrounds.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The methods we use to recruit and select new faculty and staff can have a substantial impact on our ability to attract and retain a diverse pool of talent in the Department of Medicine. Choosing search committees, scheduling candidate interviews, advertising new openings, and proactively seeking diverse candidates \u2013 these all represent opportunities for us to expand diversity within our ranks. An initial focus of the Committee has been to encourage medical residents and fellows in our Internal Medicine and Primary Care residency programs to apply for permanent faculty positions in the department. We have been interviewing and surveying residents to understand how issues of diversity and inclusion may affect their career choices and the desirability of employment settings.<\/p>\n

    Once hired, faculty and staff need to feel they are part of a robust and diverse organization. We are focusing on issues of mentorship and peer communication as potential areas that might be expanded to support and retain a diverse faculty and staff in the department. We welcome suggestions from current faculty and staff on ways to improve mentorship and communication in the department.<\/p>\n

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    1. Reducing bias against patients and families, learners, staff and faculty.<\/li>\n
    2. Addressing health care disparities in communities we serve through direct care, nd advocacy.<\/li>\n
    3. Creating multifaceted mentorship and career development programs available to faculty and staff aimed to reduce disparities.<\/li>\n
    4. Creating a data collection strategy to inform, and processes, including qualitative\/descriptive data about culture and experiences that is trusted and easily accessible to patients, staff, and providers.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      The data we have collected so far indicates a significant underrepresentation of Black, Hispanic, and Native American faculty overall, as well as at the associate professor and full professor rank. Women are also significantly underrepresented at the rank of full professor. We intend to gather yearly diversity data on the faculty serving on campus wide committees and to collect and track demographic data on faculty position applicants, interviewees, offers, new hires, and position departures.<\/p>\n

      We are addressing the underrepresentation of Medicine faculty by engaging with groups that are underrepresented in Medicine (residents and fellows) with a view to determining the barriers preventing current underrepresented residents and fellows from applying to open faculty positions. We recommend, improving the diversity among non-faculty staff and active recruitment of underrepresented faculty.<\/p>\n

      We have proposed a mentorship program for junior faculty that will assist with academic development and promotion.<\/p>\n

      We have implemented a change in the hiring and promotion practices for the non-faculty staff to reduce potential bias.<\/p>\n

      The committee has sponsored a number of initiatives to promote diversity, including:<\/p>\n