Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Social Justice at UCSF

“Here we recognize that as racism, oppression and bigotry have been baked into our institutional structures, so too must equity and justice. During your residency, you will move through a multi-pronged, longitudinal anti-oppression curriculum, designed in part by previous residents, to center those concepts and skills that they most desire. We aim to equip you with the tools to critically evaluate the systems, the structures and the institutions that we work in, so that you all will be the agents of change as we continuously push toward creating a more inclusive environment.”

April Edwell, MD

 

RISE Coalition

At UCSF, our march toward equity and justice is enacted and envisioned in part by a consortium of pediatric residents, faculty and administration. They form the RISE Coalition (Resident-led Physicians for Inclusion, Social Justice and Equity).

  • Highlight inclusion as we foster a culture that not only includes but EMBRACES diversity of culture.
  • Create a workforce that is representative of the children and families that we serve.
  • Train pediatricians who will promote our mission as future leaders.
  • Establish a firm anti-oppression and anti-racism stance.
  • Promote the transition from the identity of ally which is passive in nature, to advocate which is action-oriented.
  • Commit to including research in our toolbox for advocacy.

Program Highlights

Since 2020 our program has partnered with the Health Equity & Racial Justice (HEAR Justice) Pathway as part of the Graduate Medical Education programs to thoughtfully train and develop leaders for justice in clinical and academic spaces.

  • We developed a new Othering and Belonging Curriculum with a UCSF President’s Innovation Fund Award that includes academic half-day sessions dedicated to exploring topics such as Medical Manifestations of Structural Racism and Anti-Oppressive Responses, Gender Affirming Care, and Identity and Intersectionality for Ourselves and Our Patients. This is coupled with an iterative curriculum designed to incorporate consideration of identity and oppression in all academic venues, from clinical reasoning conferences to journal clubs and simulations. Additionally, we have a Social Justice Discussion Club that uses popular media as a platform for discussions on timely issues impacting our community.
  • We continue to invest in faculty development so that our faculty are able to better create space for conversations around racism, bias, and oppression in all the clinical and learning environments. This includes faculty development within UCSF’s broader Differences Matter Initiative as well as opportunities to engage in more targeted programs, like a longitudinal curriculum on microaggressions.
  • We launched community partnerships including with FACES for the Future where Residents and Medical Students lead 4 workshops (case-based scenarios, COVID- 19 Q&A, Wellness) for almost 400 High School Students in California and New Mexico.
  • We participated in resident applicant communication, recruitment (including the National LMSA conference and Virtual SNMA conference), evaluation and ranking.
  • We advocated for leaders from historically excluded groups within the Department of Pediatrics with a new departmental Vice Chair of DEI and 4 junior faculty DEI leaders.
  • The residency mentorship program includes specific programming by and for UIM-identifying residents from historically excluded groups.
  • We supported the UCSF community through advocacy and actions related to Black Americans killed by police, including a UCSF-wide trainee Black Healing Day, designed and led by a Pediatric resident.
Group of Pediatric Residents
A group of Pediatric Residents, Faculty, and Staff with visiting Professor and world renowned scholar on structural racism, Dr. Camara Phyillis Jones (4th from right).


Current UCSF Pediatric Faculty, Fellows and Residents can sign up to be on Diversity Committee Listservs. Once added, you will receive information regarding future meetings and current projects. Email: [email protected]

Demographics of Incoming Interns

YEAR % INTERNS WHO SELF-IDENTIFY AS UIM
2024                                                          47
2023 31
2022 29
2021 50
2020 36
2019 45
2018 32
2017 14
2016 11

*Table note: Within UCSF, the term “underrepresented in medicine” refers to people who identify as having heritage including Black/African American, Latinx, Native American, Native Hawaiian, Southeast Asian, and Filipino/a.

Visit the UCSF Office of Diversity and Outreach to learn more about the UCSF’s diverse community.