Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the School of Health Professions

The Baylor College of Medicine School of Health Professions ensures learners, faculty, and staff are equipped with the knowledge, education, skills, and attitudes needed to provide exceptional culturally competent service and care.

The School of Health Professions is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion for faculty, staff, and students. Houston is the fourth largest city in the United States, and home to a vibrantly diverse mix of cultures, beliefs, and nationalities. It is our goal to serve this community through education, patient care, and research that is inclusive, and to reflect the population we serve. We believe that diversity enriches all of us, and makes our work as educators, clinicians, and researchers better. Read on below to learn more about the steps we are taking to ensure we are creating a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment.

The Health Professions Education Executive Committee created the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Subcommittee (DE&I) in 2020. The subcommittee evolved from a multi-disciplinary task force that included Baylor College of Medicine deans and faculty diversity ambassadors from each SHP program along with representatives from BCM Human Resources, the BCM DE&I office, and Rice University’s Industrial-Organizational Psychology program. These members brought expertise in human resources, selection, research, and each program’s current policies and procedures. 

In an iterative process, the task force created recommendations in five themed areas: Climate, Ongoing Support, Recruitment, Selection, and Training. Each recommendation was plotted on an impact and effort grid to easily identify areas of focus and the effort and resources required to achieve each. The outcomes of the task force were presented to both the SHP Education Executive Council and the BCM Inclusion & Excellence Council for feedback and review in early 2020. 

With the endorsement of the EEC, an executive faculty driven DE&I subcommittee was created to assess and prioritize the recommendations. This subcommittee’s inaugural 31 members include multiple stakeholders, including: SHP deans and program directors, the PA program medical director, faculty, staff, and students, alumni, and representatives from the Department of Psychiatry and BCM’s DE&I office.

Cora Rabe, DNP, CRNA, CHSE, was named the inaugural chair and Diana Rangel as administrative support. Send inquiries to: Cora.Rabe@bcm.edu or Diana.Rangel@bcm.edu.
 

DE&I is taking a deep dive into all courses provided by the SHP to look for DEI gaps and areas for improvement within the scope of gender equality, social determinants of health, and ethnicity bias.