David Muller, MD

Over the past year there has been an increased urgency surrounding issues related to bias and racism in society at large, within our own medical school and health system and, tragically, for some of us in our own lives and families.

We’re sending this note to update the Sinai community on our ongoing efforts to eliminate bias and racism at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and our health system. We also want to acknowledge the extraordinary and meaningful work that our students are doing to bring these issues to light. As has always been the case, it is our students who are leading the charge, and who are determined to effect change both locally and globally. In particular, the Anti-Racism Coalition (ARC) and the LGBTQ student groups have inspired much of this work.

Below is a list that covers some of the progress we’ve made to date. It is not an exhaustive list and we apologize in advance for anything we may have left off. We are very proud of this collaborative work and share it with you as the first chapter of what we hope will be many more advances in undoing bias and racism at Icahn School of Medicine.

ADMISSIONS/ENROLLMENT

• Unconscious Bias (UB) training to be delivered to all Admissions Committee members
• Standardized Admissions interview questions covering holistic attributes, cultural competency, community service, social justice, and ‘distance traveled’
• Use of preferred gender pronouns in Admissions materials and on interview days
• An inclusive policy for international applicants and applicants who are Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
• Close collaboration with Students for Equal Opportunity in Medicine, Women in Science and Medicine, LGBTQ People in Medicine, and others

CURRICULAR AND STUDENT AFFAIRS

• Eliciting a patient’s preferred pronoun as part of the comprehensive history
• An educational session for all first year students on the role of unconscious bias in physician behavior
• Recruit a more diverse group of faculty to present their research at Frontiers in Science sessions. Five new speakers will be presenting their work this academic year.
• A required 2-hour interactive session (Race Space) to address racism and bias in medicine during the Surgery-Anesthesia clerkship
• “A commitment to advancing health equity” presentation by Dr. Aletha Maybank, Associate Commissioner of NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene
• A discussion for third year students on clinical patterns, stereotypes and hidden biases
• Students are now able to specify the preferred name and preferred pronoun they would like to be used in the educational environment

FACULTY DEVELOPMENT

• UB training to all ASM Year 1 and 2 small group faculty
• ASM Faculty development on mitigating bias and eliminating micro-aggressions during small group sessions
• UB training to all faculty advisors
• UB training for Course and Clerkship Directors
• Select faculty and staff completed a 2-day Undoing Racism workshop facilitated by The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond
• Select faculty and staff completed a 4-day Everyday Bias Train-the-Trainer Program for the Health Professions
• Senior faculty/administrators will be enrolling in advanced training in bias and racism taught by the Ackerman Institute
• Senior faculty/administrators will participate in a Race Space session

MEDICAL EDUCATION GRAND ROUNDS AND INSTITUTE FOR MEDICAL EDUCATION

• Dr. Quinn Capers “Implicit association testing in Admissions Committee Members”
• Dr. Kenneth Ashley: mental health services for vulnerable populations
• Dr. Helena Hansen “Structural competency and health inequities”
• Dr. Denise Rogers: educational efforts to reduce bias and racism in health care
• A screening of the film “Growing Up Trans”, followed by a panel discussion with the filmmakers
• Upcoming: a lecture and Q&A by Lisa Belkin, author of “Show Me A Hero”, on racism, desegregation, housing, and politics