August 30, 2023-October 18, 2023
Course Director
Thuy Bui, MD
Professor of Medicine
Department of Medicine
buit@upmc.edu
Course Director
Felicia Savage Friedman
felicia@yogarootsonlocation.com
Course Description
Racism impacts access to and delivery of healthcare and education in medicine. During this course, learners will analyze the impact of race and racism in medicine. A interdisciplinary team of content experts will present on race as a social construct and racism in education, criminal justice system, health outcomes, institutions and healthcare systems. These topics will be reviewed, discussed, and critiqued in small group sessions guided by student and faculty facilitators. To assess the understanding of racism in medicine, the learners will critically examine selected videos, literature, patient cases and discussion prompts and formulate strategies to combat racism in medicine.
The goal of this course is for students to learn and understand the structural racism; its effects on healthcare delivery, the impact on the health of populations, the science of medicine, and medical education; and strategies to address racism and its effects.
Course Objectives
By the end of this course, students will be able to:
- Understand race as a social construct not genetic grouping.
- Critically examine the use of race in medicine
- Explore the impact of racism on education and the demographics of the health care workforce
- Discuss racism and its impact on health outcomes and the health of populations
- Describe societal structures which lead to inequitable healthcare resource allocation
- Utilize our skills as physicians to mitigate the effects of structural racism in medicine
Educational Methods
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Pre-session Assignments: Prior to each session, there is a required scientific article(s) and/or videos to review. This independent pre-session work will prepare the learner to fully participate in the discussion and achieve the learning objectives.
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Small Group Discussion Groups: There are 6 required small group sessions that follow each live lecture. The small group sessions will take place in person with a trained faculty facilitator. During the small group session, the students will discuss the reviewed video, scholarly publications, and lecture. Live Lectures
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Live Lectures: Each session will commence with a required live lecture from an expert in the field (10:00AM-11:00AM).
Evaluation
- Pass/Fail
- Attendance Required
- 60%: Presence and participation in the small group sessions
- 40%: Group health equity project
To pass the course, students must complete the following:
- Attend the live lecture sessions
- Attend and participate in the 6 small group sessions
Requests for excused absences should be submitted here. Unexcused absences may result in grading penalties as outlined in the Policy on Absence and Attendance.