Policy on Achieving Workforce Diversity and Institutional Inclusion

PURPOSE
To outline UC Davis School of Medicine’s focus on recruitment and retention activities to achieve mission-directed diversity outcomes among its students, faculty, and senior administrative staff.

The mission of the school is "Transforming lives by improving health through the combined power of education, research, clinical care, and community.”

AUDIENCE
Everyone

LCME STANDARD
3.3: Diversity/Pipeline Programs and Partnerships

POLICY
The UC Davis Office for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (HEDI) works in tandem with the Dean of the School of Medicine,  the UC Davis Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and the Vice Chancellor of Human Health Sciences and Chief Executive Officer for UC Davis Health to lead and support system-wide initiatives focused on the recruitment of a diverse community of students, faculty, and senior administrative staff, while fostering an inclusive and equitable learning environment. Diversity, equity and inclusion and are central to our mission as an educational institution. Diversity is a defining feature of the University of California, Davis and we embrace it as a source of strength. Our differences — of race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, socioeconomic status, abilities, experience and more — enhance our ability to achieve the university’s core missions of public service, teaching and research. We do outreach and recruitment with the aim of contributing to a physician workforce that will address the health care needs of a diverse society.  Through these efforts, we seek to eliminate health care disparities and to continually increase the diversity of our student body with respect to those populations that are underrepresented in medicine and biomedical research.

  1. As a member of the University of California, the school endorses and advances the rationale for diversity set forth in the UC Regents Policy 4400 Policy on University of California Diversity and the University of California Guidelines for Addressing Race and Gender Equity in Academic Programs in Compliance with Proposition 209.
  2. In enacting UC Regents Policy 4400, the school operates in alignment with the UC Davis Campus Policy for Anti-Discrimination and the UC Davis Campus Policy for Affirmative Action in Employment.
  3. The school additionally recognizes the value of a diverse workforce.. We seek to recruit a medical school class whose identities and beliefs represent the diversity of our communities in all regards. As a majority minority-state, we seek to recruit a physician workforce reflective of the state population.
  4. The school recognizes that a diversely constituted workforce deserves an equitable and inclusive learning, discovery and patient care environment and is committed to measuring and addressing any problems with the equity of the environments in which we work and learn.

    DEFINITIONS

    1. Disadvantaged: Students self-identify as disadvantaged on the AMCAS application. Students in pathway programs who are eligible for free or reduced priced meals; or have parents/guardians who did not receive a high school diploma.
    2. Rural: Students who grew up in a rural community and/or indicate an interest in providing care in rural California, including the San Joaquin and Central Valley. Students in pathway programs who live in a rural community or spent the majority of upbringing in a rural community.
    3. LCME Definition Senior Administrative Staff: People in academic leadership roles, to include but not limited to, associate/assistant deans, directors, academic department chairs, and people who oversee the operation of affiliated clinical facilities and other educational sites. Many, if not most, of these people also have faculty appointments, and for tracking purposes should only be counted in one category.

    PROCEDURE

    1. Although we define diversity broadly (see policy section 3), due to data limitations, we select the following diversity categories by which to measure progress for improving diversity of the healthcare workforce:
      1. Medical Student Diversity: American Indians or Alaska Natives, Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinx, Disadvantaged1, Rural2
      2. Faculty Diversity: American Indians or Alaska Natives, Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinx
      3. Senior Administrative Staff Diversity3: American Indians or Alaska Natives, Blacks or African Americans, Hispanics or Latinx, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders, Women
    2. Each year, HEDI will review progress on medical student diversity through review of effectiveness of admissions, pipeline programs using aggregate data that is collected through the medical school admissions and the pipeline programs.
    3. Each year, HEDI will review progress on faculty diversity through review of data from Academic Personnel related to faculty outreach and hiring programs.
    4. Each year, HEDI will review progress on senior administrative staff diversity through review of data from Academic Personnel related to outreach and hiring programs.
    5. Each year, HEDI will review progress on house officer diversity, recruitment efforts and retention in collaboration with the Office for Graduate Medical Education.
    6. HEDI will share relevant findings with UC Davis Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, the Vice Chancellor of Human Health Sciences and Chief Executive Officer for UC Davis Health, the Faculty Executive Committee, and the Dean of the School of Medicine.
    7. HEDI will evaluate the effectiveness of equity metrics relevant to medical students, house officers, faculty, and senior administrative staff every three years and will evaluate the climate for diverse groups.
    8. The Medical School, Office of Admissions, Office of Medical Education, Office of Graduate Medical Education, Academic Personnel, and the Faculty Executive Committee will additionally work to support HEDI in developing, implementing and evaluating the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Strategic Plan.

      RESPONSIBILITY
      Office for Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
      Office of Medical Education
      UC Davis Health Legal Counsel

      REFERENCES

      1. UC Regents Policy 4400 Policy on University of California Diversity 
      2. Guidelines for Addressing Race and Gender Equity in Academic Programs in Compliance with Proposition 209
      3. UC Davis Policy on Complaints of Discrimination or Harassment. PPM 400-15
      4. UC Davis Policy on Affirmative Action in Employment. PPM 380-10

      POLICY OWNER
      Office for Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

      REVIEWED BY
      Office for Health Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion*

      REVIEWED DATE and REVIEW CYCLE
      October 2021, 3-year cycle

      Related Resources

      UC Davis School of Medicine Bylaws

      M.D. Program Homepage