Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion update – March 2021
Message from the Chair
March 2021
I am pleased to share with you the the accomplishments of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee (DEIC) since it was established in 2020. The ASCI bylaws state that the DEIC “ensures that the organization, its programs, and its mentoring mechanisms promote and recognize diversity, inclusion, and equity.” With these goals in mind, the Committee has developed two foundational documents.
The first intended to establish a common understanding of key terms. This Definitions document outlines the considerations underlying diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as presenting the term “underrepresented in medicine and science (UiMS)” in reference to populations that are underrepresented relative to their numbers in the general US population.
The second is a mechanism to collect detailed demographic information, which was initiated with the 2022 member nomination process and will be applied in all areas of the Society. We ask that members provide demographic details through their ASCI account. The data will allow us to determine the current makeup of the Society’s populations, areas needing attention, and changes over time. Information will be kept confidential, and data deidentified for any reporting.
I look forward to bringing you news of further steps the Committee and the ASCI undertake in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion, and invite you to return to this page for periodic updates and additional resources.
Sincerely, on behalf of the Committee,
Sophie Paczesny, MD, PhD
Chair, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
Past messages of note
- June 2020 – From the ASCI President. In view of the events of 2020 that brought US systemic racism and inequality into sharp focus, President Lorraine Ware described in a message to the membership a plan to establish a Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Committee in the ASCI bylaws. The Committee’s would aim to ensure that all ASCI programs emphasize diversity, inclusion, and equity; establish mentoring opportunities for underrepresented physician-scientists; and consider how the ASCI can better recognize and promote health equity research.
- August 2020 – JCI Viewpoint. The leadership of the Society, the Journal of Clinical Investigation, and JCI Insight expanded on the Statement with a publication in the JCI, providing greater detail – including planned evaluation of the current status of diversity, inclusion, and equity — as well as historical and present-day context for the ASCI and its publications.
Resources
ASCI pages and posts
- Current DEIC members
- ASCI statement on diversity, inclusion, and equity
- Voters approve Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Committee for addition to bylaws
- ASCI definitions of diversity, equity, inclusion, and underrepresented in medicine and science
Publications in the JCI Family of Journals
JCI Viewpoints
- The US biological sciences faculty gap in Asian representation
- The quagmire of race, genetic ancestry, and health disparities
- Innovations in MD-only physician-scientist training: experiences from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund physician-scientist institutional award initiative
- An immigrant’s experience: science is a discipline without borders
- Contributions of immigrants to biomedical research in the US: a personal reflection
- Getting into good trouble: Black lives matter and Black professors matter
- Promoting the success of women and minority physician-scientists in academic medicine: a dean’s perspective
- Toward realizing diversity in academic medicine
- Reflections of a Black woman physician-scientist
- A deliberate path toward diversity, equity, and inclusion within the ASCI
- COVID-19, racism, and thepursuit of health care and research worthy of trust
- Toward an equitable society: building a culture of antiracism in health care
- Controversies surrounding female athletes with differences in sexual development
- Using admission statistics to encourage diverse applicants to MD-PhD programs
- Equity and diversity in academic medicine: a perspective from the JCI editors
- The perils of intersectionality: racial and sexual harassment in medicine
- Diving beneath the surface: addressing gender inequities among clinical investigators
JCI Editorial
Presidential addresses
- 2021 ASCI: Physician-scientists in the pandemic era: tidal wave or rising tide?
- 2020 American Physician Scientist Association: “Stop scaring the children”: a call for resilient and tenacious optimism
- 2019 Association of American Physicians: Diversification in the medical sciences fuels growth of physician-scientists
