Creating a health equity and inclusion office in an academic pediatric medical center: priorities addressed and lessons learned

Abstract

Background: Over the last two decades, medical schools and academic health centers have acknowledged the persistence of health disparities in their patients and the lack of diversity in their faculty, leaders and extended workforce. We established an Office of Health Equity and Inclusion (OHEI) at our pediatric academic medical center after a thorough evaluation of prior diversity initiatives and review of faculty development data.

Objective: To describe the lessons learned at a pediatric academic medical center in prioritizing and implementing health equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) initiatives in creating the OHEI.

Materials and methods: We reviewed internal administrative data and faculty development data, including data related to faculty who are underrepresented in medicine, to understand the role of our EDI initiatives in the strategic priorities addressed and lessons learned in the creation of the OHEI.

Results: The intentional steps taken in our medical center's strategic approach in the creation of this office led to four important lessons to improve pediatric health equity: (1) board, senior executive and institutional prioritization of EDI initiatives; (2) multi-specialty and interprofessional collaboration; (3) academic approach to EDI programmatic development; and (4) intentionality with accountability in all EDI initiatives.

Conclusion: The key lessons learned during the creation of an Office of Health Equity and Inclusion can provide guidance to other academic health centers committed to implementing institutional priorities that focus their EDI initiatives on the improvement of pediatric health equity.

Keywords: Diversity; Health care disparities; Health equity; Inclusion; Pediatric; Underrepresented in medicine.