Year: 2021
Type: letter
Abstract: To the Editor: As Morris et al. state in their Special Report (April 29 issue), 1 the continuing inequities and lack of representation of racial minorities in medical schools pose a threat to the health of our country.Their report calls for more to be done "to enhance the diversity of applicants in the pipeline [such as] investment in undergraduate bridge programs."To that end, we hope to draw attention to a pilot program recently created by Congress for students from underrepresented groups to have structured and longitudinal experiences at Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals.2 The program, which we helped to design, specifically prioritizes first-generation college students and those from areas that have been federally designated as having a shortage of health care professionals.Early exposure and experience will help these students successfully enter medical school, thereby increasing representation.A diverse and innovative medical student body is critical to tackling the challenges from the current pandemic and beyond.We hope to see robust utilization and expansion of the VA program, as well as the creation of more targeted programs promoting medical careers among students with diverse backgrounds.
Source: New England Journal of Medicine
DOI: 10.1056/nejmc2109411
Authors: Devin B Morris, Philip A Gruppuso, Eli Y Adashi
Institution: Brown University
Language: English
Subfield: Gender Studies
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W3183878226