Check out these articles featuring UArizona's COM-T community!
Mark A. Nelson, Ph.D.: “Making a Difference for All People” - "Despite the historical setbacks – I’m thinking mainly of the 1921 Tulsa Greenwood Massacre when there was an uprising against what was at the time the wealthiest black community in the nation – and current racial inequalities, African Americans continue to contribute immensely to the business landscape of the United States. As the co-founder and CEO of Precision Epigenomics, I am emboldened by these challenges and excited to make a difference for all people in the Southern Arizona community and beyond." - Mark A Nelson To read more, please click HERE.
Faculty Spotlight - Khadijah Breathett, MD, MS, FACC, FAHA, FHFSA. Dr. Breathett – an advanced heart failure and transplant cardiologist and physician scientist – is Assistant Professor of Medicine at the College of Medicine – Tucson Division of Cardiology and a member of the Sarver Heart Center. Dr. Breathett’s research has been covered by major news media outlets, including Reuters, MedPage Today, WebMD, and Business Insider. She has been recognized as one of the National Minority Quality Forum's 40 Under 40 Leaders in Minority Health and as a Heart Failure Society of America Emerging Leader. She was named an International Women As One Escalator Awardee, and was selected for the American Heart Association Research Leaders Academy. Dr. Breathett is passionate about reducing racial/ethnic and gender disparities in heart failure. Click HERE for full details.
The Shared Shelf Book Club encourages vital conversations within the College of Medicine- The club was founded by Julie Armin, a faculty member in the Department of Family and Community Medicine and Director of the Health Disparities Curriculum at the College of Medicine. “The book club is something that’s been on the mind of the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for a while, but it is part of a broader initiative throughout the College of Medicine to address racism in medicine. So the goal is to really engage in critical and sometimes uncomfortable discussions and build collegiality in the college,” Armin said. “We try to keep it comfortable so people don’t feel pressure. This isn’t a course – this is enrichment, personal enrichment,” Armin said. Armin helps facilitate each meeting to encourage meaningful discourse between the diverse perspectives of the group members. “We have everyone from faculty, both clinical and non-clinical, so physicians and researchers and non-medical undergraduates, medical students, staff. It's been an interesting mix of people,” Armin said. Click HERE to read the full news article featured in The Daily Wildcat!
ANAMS Student Video Project: Pass The Stethoscope! In honor of Native American Heritage Month (November 2020), our office worked with COMT students, faculty and residents from ANAMS (Association of Native American Medical Students) to complete a video project on #passthestethoscope. This video was shared by COMT online and will continue to be available on the ODEI website. Thank you to all who participated! Click HERE to view full video.
Scientist Strives to Make Research Accessible to Undergrads - At tier-one research institutions, research is often the exclusive domain of scientists, post-doctoral fellows and graduate students. But at the University of Arizona Health Sciences, Sam Campos, PhD, is passionate about giving undergraduate students the chance to experience research hands-on in his laboratory.
Introducing INSIGHT Into Diversity’s First Annual Inspiring Affinity Group Award - The inaugural INSIGHT Into Diversity Inspiring Affinity Group Award recognizes 38 member groups that have made a significant impact on their members, campuses, and communities. These groups can also have a tremendous impact on recruiting and retaining diverse faculty, staff, and administrators. People with similar backgrounds, academic and personal interests, and especially those from underrepresented groups often find these organizations can have a great deal of influence on their workplace experience. University of Arizona College of Medicine Faculty Diversity Advisory Committee (FDAC) strives to support the university’s tradition of education, training, and employment of a diverse faculty and staff. One of its overarching goals is to increase diversity through promoting all groups traditionally underrepresented in medicine, placing a specific focus on Latino/Hispanic and Native American groups. One of FDAC’s most recent accomplishments was the creation of a hiring toolkit, which identifies best practices for promoting diversity and inclusion during the faculty search and hiring process. Related article: College of Medicine – Tucson’s Faculty Diversity Advisory Committee Recognized for Commitment to Inclusion
TPD forms board to review 'critical' incidents - UArizona's Dr Andrew Tang was asked by the Tucson Police Department to participate in the Sentinel Event Review Board. The board is made up of representatives from TPD, mayor/councilmen’s office, legal, community advocacy groups.
Four Steps Can Reduce Unconscious Bias in Hiring - When hiring new employees, the goal of using a search committee is to increase the likelihood that a better hiring decision is made. Search committees are made up of individuals, though, each of whom have their own unconscious biases that can influence the hiring process. Reducing those biases is the goal of “Unconscious Bias for Search Committees,” a training course developed by the College of Medicine – Tucson’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Dr. Victoria Murrain leads the College of Medicine – Tucson’s Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Michelle Ortiz, PhD, Assistant Director, believes unconscious bias training can help create a culture of institutional excellence when it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion.
Doctors and nurses march to end racial disparity in health care - "We strive to treat all of our patients the same regardless of who they are, where they are from and what they believe in," said Dr. Swazo.
UArizona Medical Student Selected for National Scholarship Supporting Physician Workforce Diversity - Third-year medical student Aaron Bia is one of 10 students in the nation selected for the inaugural ElevateMeD Scholarship. As a recipient, Bia will receive $10,000 for each of his remaining years at the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson. Arizona, Bia is a member of the Navajo Nation — and the only Native American awarded an ElevateMeD Scholarship. Bia is scheduled to earn his medical degree in May 2021 and is interested in pursuing family medicine as his specialty. After his residency training, Bia plans to return to his nation to serve the community that raised him.