Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Workforce Diversity and Healthcare Disparities

Indiana Hemophilia & Thrombosis Center, Indianapolis IN

Investigators

Abstract

Project Summary: The current proposal aims to support a diversity-focused workshop at the annual meeting of the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology (ASPHO) in April 2017. This will be a continuation of a series of annual workshops organized by the Diversity Special Interest Group (SIG). These diversity-oriented workshops have received NIH R13 grant support (NCI/NHLBI) for 5 of the past 6 years. We hypothesize that the longitudinal effects of these workshops serve to increase awareness of the multifaceted and complex goals of increasing diversity and facilitating advancement of under-represented individuals in our field. We propose to capitalize on these achievements by continuing this workshop series while adding an outreach activity to the medical students in the host city of the annual meeting (Montreal, Quebec, Canada for the 2017 meeting). A 2015 ASPHO workforce survey revealed significant ethnic disparities in ASPHO membership, consistent with known trends of under-representation of ethnic minorities in medicine as a whole. Anecdotally, there appears to be a significant lack of African American, Hispanic, and other ethnic representation in ASPHO leadership positions. This is partially reflective of the general ASPHO membership, and it is likely representative of the larger field of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology. We hypothesize that these disparities can be reduced over time through a combination of educational programs aimed at increasing cultural awareness among existing ASPHO members and direct mentoring of under-represented medical students and uncommitted residents (i.e., not matched to a subspecialty fellowship) in order to increase the likelihood that they choose to enter Pediatric Hematology/Oncology and aspire to leadership roles. The theme of our 2017 workshop will be ?Workforce Diversity and Healthcare Disparities.? This workshop will be open to all ASPHO conference attendees and will include: (i) a brief annual business meeting for the ASPHO Diversity SIG, (ii) a keynote address from a leader in global sickle cell disease care and healthcare disparities, and (iii) an intensive attendee-driven networking exercise to identify how diversity-related gaps in the existing Pediatric Hematology/Oncology workforce impact healthcare disparities and generate recommendations for improving outcomes for patients from under-represented groups by improving provider diversity. A key component of this year's workshop will be the expansion of trainee travel awards to include sponsorship of conference registrations for medical students who attend the McGill University in Montreal. We will continue to offer travel awards to fellowship trainees with diverse backgrounds as well as under-represented junior trainees [medical students (from outside Montreal) and residents] who will be paired with faculty ?guides.? These guides will ensure that the sponsored trainees are able to optimize their conference experience and provide a point-of- contact and mentorship within the field of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology as they begin to make career development plans well after the conference concludes.