“Conversations are the catalyst for change,” said Renaisa Anthony, M.D., M.P.H., deputy director of the Center for Reducing Health Disparities in the UNMC College of Public Health.
To engage the UNMC community in a conversation about issues related to race, inclusion, diversity and equity (RIDE), Dr. Anthony hosted two events at UNMC during Minority Health Month in April.
Becoming a model
Citing examples of the ways in which UNMC already actively engages in seeking solutions to issues of race, inclusion, diversity and equity on campus, Dr. Anthony said the academic medical center can become a model for other institutions.
Initiatives currently underway at UNMC include:
- The Bias Assessment and Response Team (BART);
- The Chancellor’s Diversity Advisory Steering Committee;
- The minority faculty conversations with the chancellor;
- The women’s mentoring group;
- Campus equity dialogue forum; and
- Mandatory cultural competency and Title IX training modules for all faculty, staff and some students.
The RIDE conference was held on April 25 and a World Cafe event on April 28, where faculty, staff, students and members of the Omaha community were encouraged to discuss RIDE and come up with solutions to make UNMC a more welcoming, inclusive place with equitable opportunities to thrive and succeed. Both events were funded by the COPH Innovation Funds.
“The Center for Reducing Health Disparities strives to achieve Healthy People 2020 goals to ‘eliminate health disparities, achieve health equity and improve the health of all populations’ in Nebraska,” Dr. Anthony said. “The national action plan to reduce health disparities emphasizes a key solution to health equity is to increase the diversity of the health care and public health workforce.”
The RIDE and World Cafe events are a step in that direction, she said.
Those who took part in the discussions were encouraged by the opportunity to speak up.
“It felt great to be a part of the dialogue,” said Amal Hamdan, a second-year medical student who attended the April 28 World Cafe event. “The World Cafe was transformative and long overdue. I found myself engaged, comfortable and vocal, and I think it speaks to how much we can thrive when in a place where we feel like we fit in, where the environment is inclusive, where we can look around and not strain our neck trying to find someone who looks like us.”
More than 90 people attended the April 25 RIDE where participants took part in anonymous polls using hand-held clickers to indicate their perception of race, inclusion, diversity and equity at UNMC. All of the participants agreed that the ideal UNMC campus is diverse, inclusive, and welcoming to all with equitable opportunities for everyone to thrive and succeed.
The April 28 World Cafe event was attended by more than 100 people.