Traditional Program's DEI Curriculum-Based Initiatives

In the Yale Traditional Internal Medicine Program, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment in which all of our trainees can thrive, knowing that they are vital members of our community. We believe that part of an outstanding medical training includes learning how to provide the highest quality care for patients from all backgrounds and to understand our patients’ health in the context of systems of structural racism and health disparities. We aim to train physicians who will address health inequity head on as advocates for their communities and leaders in promoting health justice. On this page, we describe some of the initiatives and programs that address diversity, equity, and inclusion within residency life and our patient community.

We provide a mandatory curriculum for first and third year residents focused on addressing health equity and becoming physician advocates for health justice.

The first year curriculum includes an overview of structural determinants of health, practice applying this knowledge to clinical encounters, and an introduction to resources in New Haven that address health inequity. The third year curriculum includes a workshop on systemic racism in medicine and the impact of race-based medicine on clinical care and research.

Housestaff also have the opportunity to meet and learn from local physician advocates who have integrated health equity work into their careers through avenues such as legislative advocacy and op-ed writing.

The section of Infectious Diseases has also developed the Infectious Disease Diversity, Equity, and Anti-racism (ID2EA) curriculum to support their effort to create an inviting environment and institutional culture of inclusivity where every individual’s unique and diverse characteristics are valued and respected.

We aim to incorporate themes of health equity throughout our standard curriculum. In addition to dedicated lectures, we routinely incorporate discussions of health equity into reports; for example, we may discuss how a patient’s lack of insurance influenced their clinical course or how a patient’s identity may have biased the management of their chief concern. Topics of recent reports and didactics focused on diversity and health equity have included:

• Introduction to the Care of Incarcerated Patients
• Cancer Screenings in Transgender Patients
• Healthcare of Afghan Refugees in New Haven
• Diversity in Medical Education

Chief Residents have presented Grand Rounds on topics of diversity and health equity (e.g. “A New Era of Antiracism in Medicine: Unravelling Our Past to Relearn for Our Future” by Dr. Jana Christian and “Understanding Inequity Through Scarcity: Healthcare Disparities in Organ Transplantation” by Dr. Rachel Schrier).

We aim to empower our residents with the ability to write and publish op-eds in order to serve as effective physician advocates. Many of our residents have authored op-eds during residency , and Yale offers an annual op-ed writing course for all house staff in past years co-led by a Traditional Internal Medicine resident. Examples of op-eds published by our residents while in the program include:

• The problem of health-care for undocumented immigrants
  by Dr. Solmaz Ehteshami-Afshar
• The IRS doesn’t think tampons are an essential health care item. That has to change
  by Drs. Christine Hsueh, Megan Baker, and Anna Reisman
  
• The effect of Covid-19 vaccines will — finally — be tested in pregnant people like me
  by Dr. Catherine Mezzacappa
  

All residents rotate through our resident-run clinic that works with the local non-profit Integrated Refugee and Immigrant Services (IRIS) to conduct health screenings for newly arrived refugees.

Numerous residents have published research related to health disparities during their training. Additionally, Yale School of Medicine is home to the Equity Research and Innovation Center (ERIC) which is dedicated to research focusing on healthcare equity.