508 - Upholding our PROMISE: Underrepresented in Medicine Residents’ Perspectives on Programmatic Interventions to Promote Belonging

Friday, April 28, 2023

5:15 PM – 7:15 PM ET

Poster Number: 508
Publication Number: 508.125

Lahia Yemane, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA, United States; Oriaku Kas-Osoka, Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV, Las Vegas, NV, United States; Audrea Burns, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States; Becky Blankenburg, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, CA, United States; Laura M. Kester-Prakash, University of California, Davis, School of Medicine, Rocklin, CA, United States; Patricia Poitevien, The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, United States; Alan Schwartz, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States; Candice E. Taylor Lucas, University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine, Irvine, CA, United States; Jyothi Marbin, University of California, San Francisco, School of Medicine, Berkeley, CA, United States

Presenting Author(s)

Lahia Yemane, MD (she/her/hers)

Clinical Associate Professor, General Pediatrics; Associate Program Director, Pediatrics Residency; Asst Dean for Diversity in GME, Office of Diversity in Medical Education
Stanford University School of Medicine
Palo Alto, California, United States

Background: Underrepresented in medicine (URM) students, residents, and faculty describe similar themes of the minority tax, lack of mentorship, and experiences of racism, discrimination and social isolation. Much literature is focused on barriers experienced by URM residents in the learning environments, but more is needed on interventions that promote a sense of belonging.

Objective: To identify interventions present in pediatric residency programs that promote a sense of belonging among URM residents as identified by URM residents themselves.

Design/Methods: This secondary qualitative analysis was part of a larger IRB-approved, multi-site cross-sectional study, PROMISE (PROmoting Med-Ed Insight into Supportive Environments), to describe the experiences of URM residents during training in relation to their self-identities. This study was approved for distribution and data management through the Association of Pediatric Program Directors Longitudinal Educational Research Assessment Network (APPD LEARN) and was open from October 2020 to January 2021. Data were analyzed by two authors using content analysis for all free text responses from URM residents to the question “What are current measures (i.e., programs, workshops, lectures) that promote a sense of belonging for the URM community in your training program?”

Results: 931 residents responded to the survey, with 167 (18%) identifying as URM. 74 (44%) URM pediatric residents, representing 22 residency programs, provided over 140 responses to the open-ended question. Authors identified seven major themes of programmatic interventions which promote belonging. See table 1 for themes and representative quotes. (1) Critical mass of URM residents (2) Recruitment of URM residents (3) Social support, including opportunities to build community among URM residents (4) Mentorship (5) Caring and responsive leadership (6) Longitudinal curricula on health disparities, diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism and (7) Opportunities to serve, including giving back to the local community and near-peer mentorship of URM students.

Conclusion(s):
This is the first national study to describe URM pediatrics residents’ perspectives on interventions that promote a sense of belonging in their residency program. Programs can consider implementing these interventions to foster inclusion and belonging among URM residents.