An Institutional Coordinated Plan for Effective Partnerships to Achieve Health Equity and Biomedical Workforce Diversity

Abstract

The rapid growth and accumulation of specialized knowledge in today’s biomedi­cal fields, combined with entrenched and emerging health issues that persist among certain groups within the US population, emphasizes the significant need to diversify the nation’s biomedical science workforce. The under-representation of minorities in science results in inadequate scientific input from divergent social or cultural perspec­tives and detracts from our nation’s ability to resolve health disparities. The University of North Texas Health Science Center at Fort Worth has developed a coordinated approach with local, regional, and na­tional partners to increase participation of underrepresented students along the career pathway from K-12 to faculty level. Career stage specific activities that include research, mentoring, networking, career development, grantsmanship and health disparities curriculum are provided for participants. Successful outcomes from our coordinated plan includes an increase in participant self-efficacy, research presenta­tion awards, increase in grant awards and publications, and career advancement. Through partnerships within our institution, local school districts, and minority serving institutions nationwide, our coordinated plan provides mutually beneficial co-learning experiences to increase the number of under-represented individuals entering translational research focused on increasing the biomedical research workforce diversity and achieving health equity. Ethn Dis. 2019;29(Suppl2):129-134); doi:10.18865/ed.29.S1.129.