Diversity Equity and Inclusion

Our Med-Peds program is committed to creating a residency program that promotes and celebrates diversity in all forms.  Over the last several years we have taken an intentional approach to identifying ways our program can reduce bias, address health inequities, and dismantle racism at all levels.

Here is what we are doing:

Holistic Review of all applications: we recognize the importance of highlighting and celebrating each applicant’s life story and journey to medicine. In 2018 we did a complete review of how we approached recruitment and made important changes to ensure an unbiased and transparent screening and selection process. Dr. Venci and Med-Peds leadership use Data from the AAMC to support their work to address the persistent underrepresentation of certain racial and ethnic minority groups and women in medicine.

• Program Support: Our leadership is constantly looking at ways to increase and celebrate diversity within our program and our medical campuses. Dr. Venci is a member of the MPPDA Diversity and Inclusion Taskforce and is working with Denver Health leadership to develop an Equitable Hiring Toolkit for the Departments of Internal Medicine, Pediatrics and Family Medicine to support efforts to diversify the provider workforce. Dr. Carolina Gutierrez, our newest APD and graduate of our CU Med-Peds program, is actively involved in developing our REACH and Race in Medicine Curricula and has been an outstanding mentor for our URiM residents and students. Over the last several years Dr. Venci has built a strong relationship with Denver Public Health to work on QI projects that address health disparities. This partnership has been a wonderful way for our residency program to address health equity at the community level and we look forward to future collaborations.
• Race in Medicine curriculum: this two-year curriculum starts on day one of residency training. Dr. Daniel Goldberg (Associate Professor for the Department of Family Medicine/Center for bioethics and humanities for the University of Colorado) leads our residents and faculty through the history of racism in America and in Medicine and gives residents the time and space to explore ways take action. Check out the NMPRA Spotlight (page 7) 
• Upstander and Bias Trainings: On day one of residency, all of our interns take this training as part of our REACH curriculum. In addition, all Med-Peds faculty take this training.
• Community Involvement: Our JEDAI Committee actively engages in the community participating several events: Black Lives Matter community events including #irunwithAhmaud and Whitecoats for Black Lives campus-wide demonstration to remember George Floyd and others before him whose lives were shortened due to social injustices.
• LGBTQ+ Trainings and Education: Denver Health is a LGBTQ Center of Excellence. Throughout the year we also offer residents and faculty additional trainings related to transgender health care during our academic half days. Many of our Med-Peds faculty provide gender affirming care for kids and adults.
• Membership in Campus Groups that Support and Celebrate Diversity: Our residents are active participants in the Diversity in Pediatrics Committee (DIPC), Minority and Allied Resident Council (MARC), and University of Colorado Organization for Racial and Ethnic Support (UCOLORES).
• Mentorship for URiM Students: Our residents are mentors for the Denver Health’s pipeline program Healthcare Interest Program (HIP) and the University of Colorado School of Medicine’s First Up program for first generation students.
• Resident-Led JEDAI Committee: Our JEDAI Committee leads several initiatives to help our continuity clinic’s underserved community including: Annual Back to School Drive, Produce Prescription Program, Adopt a Refugee Family for Christmas event. Our residents have received the APP CATCH grand and the NMPRA community service grant to support their work.
• Celebrations of Diversity: Our program participates in the University of Colorado’s Diversity Second Look Event and Toast to Diversity Gala in collaboration with the University of Colorado School for Medicine.
• Participation in NMPRA DEI Subcommittee: Dr. Carolina Gutierrez - Faculty Representative, Dr. Helena Villalobos Resident-Faculty liaisons.
• Grants to Develop Anti-Racist Curriculum: Dr. Venci has been awarded a Building Trust through Diversity, Health Care Equity, and Inclusion in Internal Medicine grant. She will collaborate with Dr. Jacqueline Ward-Gaines to build on the diversity, equity, and inclusion simulation curriculum she co-developed for emergency medicine residents in the Center for Advancing Professional.

Please visit the following links to learn about diversity and inclusion efforts in the Department of Medicine, the Department of Pediatrics, and The University of Colorado School of Medicine.