Health Sciences Diversity Statement

Diversity within UMMC School of Health Related Professions' Health Sciences department encompasses an inclusive and welcoming environment that is enhanced by persons who differ in ability, age, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, national origin, race, religious belief, sexual orientation, and socio-economic background. Our commitment to diversity is reflected in a community, both online and on-campus, that is bound by the desire for equal consideration for all people. It is affirmed by the school's policies and strategies to develop a diverse student body and faculty membership committed to education, health care, and research, thus, ensuring that all members of our community have the ability to reach their individual and collective potential.

The growing cultural diversity of Mississippi and in the United States calls for health professionals who strive continually to achieve cultural competence and are able to function effectively across an array of multicultural interpersonal and social situations. Becoming culturally competent enhances the capacity of health professionals and health care organizations to assess, plan, deliver, evaluate, and continually improve care that is sensitive to and respectful of the diverse beliefs, values, practices, and needs of the individuals, families, and communities served. The Health Sciences department is committed to this aim in its continued assessment of the curriculum; admission of students; recruitment and retention of faculty, staff, and students; and contributions to health care and research.

Our commitment to education, health care, and research is rooted in the ethos of the Health Sciences program as a microcosm of larger society. We are representative of and devoted to the community we serve. To that end, our commitment to education, health care, and research are as follows:

Education

Within the department and in concert with the school and the university, our efforts of inclusion and consideration are to promote a learning environment that is conducive to the preparation of students and to the support of educators for enhanced interaction with and competition among diverse individuals nationally and globally. We exercise this aim in admission of diverse students from an array of backgrounds: adult learners, first-generation college students, community college students, students from rural communities, and non-traditional and traditional college students.

Our continued assessment of curriculum is intended to ensure that the content and educational experiences of our students are current and commensurate with the diverse and valued perspectives within health care education. In addition, our students are nurtured as a result of the inclusion of diverse faculty and staff which provides a reservoir of valuable perspectives.

Health care

As our students are health professionals, our program, in part, is designed to provide them with enriched course content to appropriately provide health care to the continuously evolving patient demographic. We are committed to our students' understanding and successful execution of cultural sensitivity surrounding patient care. UMMC is devoted to improved health care delivery which significantly hinges on culturally competent health care professionals and leaders within health care systems. The Health Sciences department champions this objective with its education of these individuals in this area.

Research

Our standard for excellence in research thrives in pursuit of faculty engaging in scientific, social, and behavioral inquiries aligned with their professional goals. Through diversity programming, strategic partnerships, and population health studies, faculty continually address and disseminate research on broad national and local needs of rural and underserved groups, health care disparities health workforce gaps, health care access issues, health law and policy, and health professions. Curricula within the Health Sciences department foster student research in these areas.