Several American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) Member Boards are working to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in their respective specialties.
Nearly half of the 24 Member Boards are involved in efforts to increase the proportion of under-represented in medicine (URiM) trainees entering graduate medical education. To that end, they are participating in pipeline discussions and analyses in specialties and subspecialties, engaging in grant programs that promote equity in medical education and training, supporting minority mentoring programs, and working with historically black colleges and universities. Many boards are collaborating with their respective specialty societies and other stakeholders in these efforts.
The American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) convened a meeting of internal medicine societies, aptly named the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Collaborative Network, to determine how best to work together on DEI within the specialty. The board has collaborated with societies to address pathway development, mentorship, and best practices in light of the changing demands in health equity and availability of DEI resources. The Network’s first convening featured Dr. Mark Henderson, Associate Dean of Admissions at UC Davis, who is an expert in reforming medical school admission practices to enhance racial, ethnic, and economic diversity.
ABIM has also provided $500,000 worth of grants to advance health equity and improve trust in medical education in collaboration with the ABIM Foundation, Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine, American College of Physicians, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and Macy Foundation. These grants bring the total amount dedicated to addressing health inequities by sponsors to nearly $1.6 million. To date, there are more than 45 grantees. Most of the first cohort of grantees and many of the second cohort have now completed their work; many grantees have succeeded in having their curricula incorporated permanently at their institutions.
The American Board of Ophthalmology (ABO) maintains a partnership with the American Academy of Ophthalmology and Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology to support the Minority Ophthalmology Mentoring Program. The board also contributes to the Rabb-Venable Excellence in Ophthalmology Research Program. ABO Chief Executive Officer George B. Bartley, MD, recently presented the American Ophthalmological Society’s 2024 Marilyn Miller Lecture on Equity and Equality in Ophthalmology: Finding Balance.
The American Board of Plastic Surgery (ABPS) leaders have provided presentations at the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and plastic surgery/hand societies about mentoring and outreach to URiM medical students, residents, and fellows within plastic surgery. The board has also engaged with leadership at select sponsoring organizations to support participation of URiM medical students and residents in their programs.
This summer, the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM) welcomed the 2024 class of the Dr. Leon L. Haley, Jr., Bridge to the Future of Emergency Medicine Academy. The two-week mentorship program at ABEM’s headquarters was created in 2022 for rising second-year URiM medical students.
The American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) continues to partner with numerous pediatric and medical organizations to support academic mentorship programs and promote partnerships to reduce health disparities. The American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology has held Crucial Issues Forums on supporting and promoting both URiM physicians and women in academic psychiatry and neurology. The board has also modified research awards/grants to encourage DEI submissions.
While the American Board of Neurological Surgery plans to sponsor URiM medical students interested in neurosurgery as part of a National Institute of Health grant, the American Board of Surgery contributed to ACS’ DEI and Antiracism Toolkit, which was launched at the ACS Clinical Congress in October. The American Board of Radiology (ABR) was one of 11 partners that formed the Radiology Health Equity Coalition in 2021. The American College of Radiology convened the Coalition to positively impact health care equity in the radiology arena. This network of patient-focused radiology societies collects, assesses, and disseminates resources and best practices, advocates for and connects with patients and community members, and collaborates on programs and services to improve access and utilization of preventative and diagnostic imaging.
While one-third of the Member Boards have published papers on DEI-related topics in their respective specialties, a few are involved in DEI-related research. In addition to publishing papers, ABP collaborates with various pediatric and medical organizations to conduct research on factors influencing diversity in the pediatric workforce. The ABP Foundation supports the American Pediatric Association’s Research in Academic Pediatrics Initiative in Diversity. Studies published by ABEM include research demonstrating that emergency medicine (EM) residency does not reduce a racial minority-based test performance gap and exploring different diversity factors that may impact performance on its Qualifying Exam. ABEM is also partnering with external researchers investigating burnout trends among disaggregated cohorts of diverse EM residents and evaluating disparities in attrition from clinical EM practice between men and women. In 2023, ABO, ABPS, ABR, and the American Board of Thoracic Surgery sponsored ABMS Visiting Scholars whose research projects focus on a DEI-related issue. In 2024, ABEM, ABO, the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and ABMS Research and Education Foundation did the same. Topics range from evaluating a board’s written and oral exams for bias to racial, ethnic, and gender diversity in board examiners.
ABMS Member Boards are advancing DEI across the specialties in myriad ways as they are keenly aware that increasing the pipeline of URiM trainees entering graduate medical education is key to growing a more diverse physician workforce.
© 2024 American Board of Medical Specialties
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