Hello Fellow Netizens,
Springtime is in the air, and with it comes the start of new chapters for many college students throughout the United States. In my medical school, we welcomed incoming prospective students to our campus and showed them the highlights of what their next four years may look like. Seeing their faces made me reflect on my own class when we first started, and one of the first things that I made sure to focus on is how diverse my class was. You may be wondering: “Why would you care about something like that? That’s a little random/weird.” Well, let me explain.
Diversity: Why It Matters To Me (and to the Medical Establishment)
To explain why diversity matters to me, let me give you some background about myself. Note that this information is a reflection of my experiences and does not reflect any objective truths of any one group (I have to put this disclaimer out because, you know, responsible journalism).
I immigrated to the United States in 2007, and had to live with my aunt in Southern California while my family learned how to start our new lives as Americans. One of the first things that I noticed was that her neighborhood was mostly composed of white, middle class households (with the exception of one or two Asian neighbors scattered around). It was jarring to say the least; I may have spoken good English and knew some American culture to fit in, but to have brown skin in a sea of white homogeneity was scary. I remember clearly when on the first day of fifth grade one of my white classmates asked me if I spoke “Mexican”, even though my teacher introduced me as an immigrant from Asia. Maybe, I thought, if my classmates were exposed to more people like me, they would learn how to tell the difference between Filipinos and Mexicans better than simply lumping us into one group because we “looked” the same. That classmate of mine would have also probably learned that “Mexican” is not a language… but I digress.
Personal experiences aside, diversity matters not only in everyday life but even more so in healthcare . A systematic review from 2019 identified the value of cultural immersion for healthcare professionals. The authors concluded that diverse experiences improved a provider’s abilities to work with patients who may not come from a similar culture or background. This matters more in the US, especially since our country’s population is projected to become more diverse over time. For example, the US Census projects that by the year 2045 non-Hispanic White people will no longer make up the majority of our country’s population. Whether people like it or not, this trend is a warning bell for the United States to prepare its healthcare workforce for the challenges ahead when working with a culturally diverse patient population.
DEI: Why the Hate?
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (otherwise known as DEI) has been the target of recent controversy, especially within higher education. To the netizens wondering what DEI even is, we can break the concept down to what each of the words stand for (***Definitions are from Oxford Dictionary, in case anyone was wondering):
- Diversity: “the practice or quality of including or involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds and of different genders, sexual orientations, etc.”
- Equity: “the quality of being fair and impartial” – NOTE: this is not the same as equality; equity takes into account a person’s background and disadvantages while equality does not.
- Inclusion: “the practice or policy of providing equal access to opportunities and resources for people who might otherwise be excluded or marginalized”
These definitions combine to create a framework for companies and institutions to increase access to opportunities for all Americans, regardless of your background or identity. While DEI seems like a more modern concept, its practice in the United States actually goes back a few decades ago. The history of DEI has its roots in the Civil Rights Era of the 1960s, where racial segregation and discrimination prevented Black Americans from access to jobs, colleges, and other opportunities that their White counterparts had. If you would like to see more on how DEI has evolved, click here to see a cool interactive timeline from the Washington Post.
This all sounds nice, right? Well, apparently not for everyone. Today, DEI is the target for conservative backlash, with many claiming that it promotes “racist” and “dangerous” policies in institutions that embrace them. To bring a health policy example into the mix, a CNN article outlined one recent issue that impacts health professionals and their patients:
“…North Carolina Republican Rep. Greg Murphy introduced the “Embracing anti-Discrimination, Unbiased Curricula, and Advancing Truth in Education (EDUCATE) Act” would amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to prohibit medical schools from getting federal funding if they adopt policies or requirements related to DEI, including promoting beliefs that a person’s sex, race, ethnicity or skin color makes them a member of an oppressed group, or that the US is a “systemically” racist country.”
Nicquel Terry Ellis, CNN
Clearly, Mr. Murphy is not a fan of DEI; if fact, he even co-authored an op-ed on the matter for the Wall Street Journal where he made his stance crystal clear. His actions are a reflection of a growing crusade by the Republican party against the practice of DEI in higher education. This trend would likely continue given how it has now become a rallying point for conservative voters throughout the country.
Why Should You Care?
To answer this, we need to understand what the consequences are for banning DEI in medical education.
A lack of exposure to patients or colleagues of different backgrounds may have dangerous consequences. A study from 2016 found that some medical students and residents have perceived ideas that Black patients have a higher pain tolerance compared to their White counterparts. Not surprisingly, this belief altered the accuracy of treatment recommendations for Black patients. Additionally, a narrative review from 2019 analyzed several studies which indicated that some medical students were unprepared for the treatment of LGBTQ+ patients, especially with trans and gender-diverse populations. Lack of exposure and training in this arena of health care has the potential to decrease outcomes for these groups. An article from the Washington Post highlights some barriers to care that trans people face, from discrimination to providers having minimal knowledge about trans healthcare.
These examples highlight the need to include DEI in the medical curricula of schools throughout the nation. To be frank, it would be a costly, even deadly, mistake for both you and I to ban DEI philosophies in the training of future physicians.
While writing this article, I realized that not everyone might not be willing to accept what I may have to say on this issue (probably like most controversial issues that I write about). Obviously, DEI is a philosophy that I personally believe in; without it people like me would continue to live in the United States with a sense of fear and frustration. If you share my concerns, continue to advocate for DEI in our country’s education system. Not only is it a matter of public health, but a matter of protecting values that make the United States a safe and welcoming place for all Americans.
Stay Safe, Fellow Netizens!
Featured Photo: Photo by fauxels: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-people-near-wooden-table-3184418/
Disclaimer: This article reflects the author’s own opinions and statements. They do not reflect the opinions or stances of any organization affiliated with the author.
