Recruitment of minority physicians into careers in internal medicine

JT Potts Jr - Annals of internal medicine, 1992 - acpjournals.org
JT Potts Jr
Annals of internal medicine, 1992acpjournals.org
▪ Despite some initial success in the early 1970s, the important goal of increasing the
numbers of under-represented minorities in medical school and on medical faculties has
stalled short of proportionate representation. To further the current efforts of the Association
of Professors in Medicine (APM) and other national medical groups that are devoted to
improving the numbers of minorities in medicine, ideas and program information must be
shared among institutions. In this spirit, we review our experience at Massachusetts General …
▪ Despite some initial success in the early 1970s, the important goal of increasing the numbers of under-represented minorities in medical school and on medical faculties has stalled short of proportionate representation. To further the current efforts of the Association of Professors in Medicine (APM) and other national medical groups that are devoted to improving the numbers of minorities in medicine, ideas and program information must be shared among institutions. In this spirit, we review our experience at Massachusetts General Hospital. We found that the first step toward this goal must be an institutional commitment based on increased awareness and on special effort focused on housestaff recruitment. Once the numbers of minorities increase, the department chairperson, training program directors, and other involved faculty can work with younger minority physicians; the cooperative relationship thus created can guide the development of a strong minority recruitment program without requiring an undue time commitment from minority trainees and faculty. The APM has a combined goal: to achieve early practical results in individual departments, to play a catalytic role with the community and other national medical organizations, and to increase the number of minorities entering medical school and careers in medicine generally.
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