Diversity

Diversity is central to the mission of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health in meeting the health needs of the people of Wisconsin and beyond through excellence in education, research, patient care, and service. Therefore, the School of Medicine and Public Health is committed to:

• Providing training dedicated to producing clinicians and scholars who understand the needs of diverse individuals, families and populations
• Educating an ethnically and racially diverse group of clinicians and scholars
• Studying ethnic and racial disparities in health and health care, as well as the potential means to eliminate those disparities
• Maintaining an open, inclusive and respectful learning and working environment 

To achieve this vision, the UW School of Medicine and Public Health will:

• Recruit, admit, and graduate a diverse student body
• Appoint and retain faculty, staff, administrators, residents, and fellows from diverse backgrounds
• Employ a curriculum that includes emphasis on cross-cultural instruction and intercultural communication skills
• Advance a research agenda in areas of scholarship focusing on diversity and ethnic and racial disparities
• Provide support for new and existing programs and resources to advance the diversity mission

In the News

Ana Martinez-Donate is Passionate About Working with Underserved Communities   Since Mexican migrants and immigrants can be a mobile group, and include many who are in the United States without papers, doing public health surveys in their population can be tricky.   So health researcher Ana Martinez-Donate and her colleagues in Mexico came up with a novel way to study HIV infection rates and infection risk factors among that group - she went across the border into Tijuana, Mexico. Read more

Programs and Initiatives

The Office of Multicultural Affairs at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health strives to promote a climate that embraces diversity and supports professional development for all students. Some activities include:

• Coordinating and developing programs and activities for pre-college and undergraduate students
• Collaborating with undergraduate programs, pre-medical organizations, students and advisors and the UW School of Medicine and Public Health's Office of Admissions
• Advising and counseling medical students and monitoring academic progress

The Office of Academic Affairs has numerous programs to increase the number of historically underrepresented students in medicine.

• The Rural and Urban Scholars in Community Health (RUSCH) program targets undergraduate students at UW-Milwaukee and UW-Platteville with an interest in practicing medicine in underserved urban or rural areas.
• The Wisconsin Academy for Rural Medicine (WARM) works to attract students that represent rural Wisconsin, increasing the number of Native American, Hmong, and Spanish speakers who have a strong interest in practicing in a rural setting.
• The Training in Urban Medicine and Public Health (TRIUMPH) program focuses on recruiting and training physicians to serve in urban settings.

For new faculty recruitment, a workshop has been developed for chairs and members of search committees to assist them in selecting a diverse pool of candidates. In addition, a restructured, school-wide Faculty and Staff Equity and Diversity Committee is charged with addressing equity and diversity plans to become a proactive leadership group.

The School has initiated the Centennial Scholars Program to develop faculty whose diversity enhances the quality of education and research and who may serve as visible and available role models for students and trainees, especially those from underrepresented minority groups.

The Collaborative Center for Health Equity (CCHE) was created to engage partners in collaborative teaching, research, and service initiatives to improve health equity in Wisconsin. The Collaborative Center for Health Equity staff works closely with the Institute for Clinical and Translational Research (ICTR) staff engaged in its administrative, research, training and education, and community-academic partnership cores. This collaboration allows for improved training opportunities for students, and creates an active and vibrant research community to attract faculty and staff with a strong interest in underserved populations.

Likewise, the Wisconsin Partnership Program provides community grant support to aid in attracting a diverse faculty to work with students in reducing health disparities.