In partnership with Georgetown University Medical Center, the MedStar Health Academic Affairs Working Group for Racial Justice was created to address the negative impact of systemic racism in our MedStar Health academic community. The focus audience of this working group is MedStar Health residents, fellows, and teaching faculty. This effort consists of a Steering Committee and six Subcommittees, or working groups, focused on the development and implementation of sustainable positive change in our clinical learning environments.
The Steering Committee is comprised of Faculty and Resident/Fellow Co-chairs, a GME lead, MedStar Health Executive Sponsors, and each Subcommittee’s Faculty and Resident/Fellow co-chairs. Its purpose is to oversee the work of the six Subcommittees and interact and coordinate with the Georgetown Steering Committee and MedStar Health Human Resources leadership on their related efforts.
Similarly, the six Subcommittees are comprised of Faculty and Resident/Fellow Co-chairs, a GME lead, MedStar Health Executive Sponsors and Faculty and Resident/Fellow committee members. “Reactor panels” have been created for each Subcommittee to act as sounding boards for proposed ideas and initiatives. The Subcommittees’ focus spans both individual (Cura Personalis) and community efforts (Cura Communitas) that are proactive and sustainable in order to affect change.
We recognize there are other groups who experience discrimination, and we expect the work of this initiative to positively impact the lives of all members of our academic community. This is not a single effort, and once this initiative has reached initial maturity, we can transition to addressing other forms of oppression and discrimination.
The objectives of this working group include:
- Proactively address resident/fellow/teaching faculty well-being, specifically as it pertains to racial discrimination.
- Provide ongoing recognition of, and support for the needs of our academic community, including prompt communications, as part of the critical national conversation regarding racial inequities.
- Improve the recruitment, selection and retention of Black and URM residents/fellows/teaching faculty for our GME programs by identifying and attenuating barriers and providing enhanced support and development.
- Evaluate the curriculum to dismantle elements of systemic racism through curricular changes and interventions.
- Incorporate race and ethnicity education, including implicit bias and racial equity, into the GME curriculum and faculty development.
- Foster longitudinal discussions geared toward reconciliation about race and racism.
- Create a diverse and inclusive community and clinical learning environment, including GME policies and procedures.
- Facilitate efforts of our academic community to make a positive and sustainable impact on health disparities in the communities that we serve.
- Partner with Georgetown School of Medicine to assure integration of these efforts across the continuum of education.
- Provide transparency and accountability regarding these objectives.
