The UCSD DEM is committed to achieving healthcare equity by providing emergency at hospitals which serve a disproportionate share of medically underserved patients, including the UCSD Hillcrest Campus (an urban/downtown setting) and at El Centro Regional Medical Center (a rural and national border setting).

We are committed to enhancing diversity within the UCSD DEM, including the faculty, fellowships, and residency. Through education, community service, mentorship and support, we aspire to increase the numbers of historically underrepresented healthcare professionals and empower them to be future leaders in medicine and the specialty. 

Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Taskforce

The DEM EDI Taskforce meets quarterly and includes departmental leadership, faculty & residents. Our core initiatives focus on promoting:

Community Outreach & Advocacy

DEM community outreach activities include:

• Our annual downtown reality tour during intern orientation, in which we visit our community health partners such as the UCSD Student-Run Free Clinic,  SD County Mental Health Hospital, Father Joes’ Village, SD County Jail, and Logan Heights Family Health Center. Faculty, fellows and residents are welcome to volunteer.
• Health policy & advocacy efforts via Cal ACEP, Cal AAEM, the San Diego Medical Society & the California Medical Association
• High school visits and mentorship opportunities in San Diego and El Centro, and
• Collaborating with UCSD student–run organizations such as LMSA, SNMA, ANAMS, & LGBTQ

Education

EDI topics are embedded within the residency curriculum, including:

• Annual Grand Rounds guest speakers
• Core Conference sessions,
• DEM journal club
• Our monthly social EM journal club, which is regularly attended by faculty, fellows, residents and DEM social workers).

Recent topics have included implicit biases, micro-aggressions, transgender healthcare, COVID-19 disproportionate outcomes, and homelessness. We also soon plan to start a “Street Medicine” UCSD school of medicine elective, which will allow DEM faculty, fellows and residents an opportunity to teach and volunteer with our local homeless community.

Recruitment

UC San Diego and the DEM aspire to increase the numbers of historically underrepresented healthcare professionals (including faculty, fellows, and residents) and empower them to be future leaders in medicine and the specialty.  The DEM offers a visiting student scholarship for underrepresented minorities to help defer the cost of doing an away rotation in EM at UCSD. Mentorship and support exist at all levels of training, and a positive work environment and culture permeate our campus and the healthcare environment. Furthermore, UCSD health and campus both offer extensive resources to promote EDI and retention of URM faculty, fellows & residents.

Women in Emergency Medicine (WEM)

WEM meets quarterly for social activities such as hiking, painting, picnics, etc. to encourage friendship and informal mentorship between the faculty, fellows, and residents. We host meet and greet events with visiting grand rounds speakers where women in the UCSD DEM can learn from one another. Speakers who visit our department as guest speakers possess a wealth of knowledge and breadth of personal and professional experiences, which are an invaluable resource, regardless of career stage. Informal WEM events occur quarterly and have included painting, book club, and combined EM/IM panel discussions. The first annual San Diego Regional Women in Emergency Medicine Symposium was hosted by UCSD in 2019. All these events seek to translate expertise into professional development and community-building.

LGBTQ

UCSD is highly supportive of LGBTQ patients, faculty, residents and staff, and we include LGBTQ related health Issues in our residency curriculum. Recent topics have included implicit bias, HIV and STIs, transgender healthcare, and psycho-social aspects of the LGBT experience related to disproportionate healthcare outcomes. UCSD DEM faculty and residents are involved in several UCSD initiatives, including the Chancellor’s LGBT Advisory Committee and our very own UCSD DEM EDI Taskforce. We encourage LGBT applicants to join our family and welcome you to explore UCSD’s LGBT Resource Center website.