MEDICAL EDUCATION
Diversity among students, faculty and staff is among the aims of the college’s new Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement.
Diversity Program to Create Pathways to Medical School In America, healthcare disparities remain startling: A person’s ZIP code, the color of their skin or their sexual orientation sometimes means that their health outcomes are worse and their lives are shorter. However, there is good data to suggest that medical students who come from rural and medically underserved communities tend to return to their roots to practice medicine and make a difference in areas where they are needed the most. This year the OU College of Medicine created the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement (ODICE) to develop talent and create pathways to medical school for students from under-represented groups. They’re doing so by forging long-lasting relationships with young people across Oklahoma, working with them over time from the moment they first dream of becoming a doctor. “It’s hard for young people from rural or disadvantaged backgrounds to imagine that they can be a doctor when they don’t see anyone who looks like them or have access to someone who can help mentor them,” said Roberto Salinas, M.D., assistant dean for diversity. “For many, they are the first in their family to go to college and often lack the academic readiness for the rigorous premedical curriculum and medical school entrance exam that awaits them. Thus, we have to start
16
much earlier and start a conversation with students and their parents to better prepare them and create pathways to help guide them.” In middle school, students begin to cultivate their interest in science and math. Traditionally, however, many of those students have “leaked” out of pipeline programs if the curriculum is too rigid or if they don’t have mentors. ODICE aims to engage students through various partnerships, including tribes and area high schools, to not only tell students that it’s possible to become a doctor, but to give them a road map for getting there. “It’s nothing more than equity — giving every student the same opportunity to develop those academic skills to become better-qualified applicants to medical school,” Salinas said. “If students are willing to put in the hard work, are committed and remain steadfast in their pursuit of their dream, then we have an obligation as an institution of higher learning to create opportunities to help better their academic readiness.” Candice Teets, who works with Salinas as coordinator for student diversity, has been making partnerships with Oklahoma organizations since she began in January. The College of Medicine is hosting a STEAM Camp – Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Math – with the Comanche
[ S p r i n g /S u m m e r 2 019 ]
