Cases on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the Health Professions Educator

Currently, there is a critical need to integrate diversity and inclusion into health professions curricula and to diversify educators’ approaches to teaching. The COVID-19 pandemic has most recently highlighted the systemic barriers that exist for our most vulnerable patients. To address these inequities, it is important to promote diversity and inclusion in thought, practice, and curricular content. Social and cultural experiences uniquely influence the learning experience, so a plurality of perspectives should be represented in educational material and seen in the classroom. Cases on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the Health Professions Educator serves as a tool to enhance the structure and competencies of learners in health professions. This case book engages both learners and educators in health professions in robust discussions that serve to enhance awareness and knowledge around these issues with the expectation that knowledge will translate into practices that eventually reduce health inequities. Covering topics such as ableism, barriers to healthcare access, and mental health stigma, this case book is an indispensable resource for health professionals, educators and students in the health professions, hospital administrators, medical librarians, sociologists, government officials, researchers, and academicians.

Chasity Beth O'Malley has more than 20 years of experience as an educator in higher education. She has worked closely with student populations of varying ages, genders, abilities, races, and, ethnicities. She is currently working in the Boonshoft School of Medicine at Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio, as an Associate Professor in Medical Education. While relatively new to the field of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, she has been successful in obtaining extramural funding to facilitate curricular changes related to DEI topics and in reporting on the findings and successes of DEI focused curricular interventions for the past several years.

Arkene Levy is a Jamaican Native who moved to South Florida in 2015. She currently serves as an Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Director of Diversity Equity and Inclusion for the Dr Kiran C Patel College of Allopathic Medicine at Nova Southeastern University in sunny Florida. In her role as DEI Director, Arkene has mentored students in research related to health disparities, race equity and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, queer, intersex (LGBTQI+) cultural competency. She has presented and published her DEI work at the regional and national level including the International Association of Medical Sciences Educators (IAMSE) and Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) National conferences. Arkene is currently a member of the AAMC Group on Diversity and Southern Group on Educational Affairs, as well as IAMSE. She is a founding member of the DEI working group for the Florida Council of Deans and also serves as Co-Co-Chair of the South Florida Community Coalition which focuses on opioid and substance use prevention education for at-risk youth. Dr Levy is currently PI and Co-PI for several DEI-related grants including a Florida Blue foundation grant for opioid abuse prevention awareness and IAMSE curricular innovation grants focused on LGBTQ Proficiency and mitigating imposter phenomenon in diverse medical student populations.

Amanda Chase is an Associate Professor of Medical Education with Nova Southeastern University Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine where she contributes to global course design and case writing for an integrated, case-based learning curriculum. She earned her Ph.D. in Cellular and Molecular Medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and completed postdoctoral research on viral immunology at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Dr. Chase has ten years of experience as a medical educator and has collaborated with teams of educators to build innovative curriculum and assessment models for two new medical schools. Currently, she serves as the Cardiovascular, Pulmonary, and Renal Course Co-Director and Interprofessional Collaboration Thread Director. Her educational research focuses on enhancing strategic learning through the integration and assessment of communication skills, with a particular focus on role play. Dr. Chase is actively involved in educator mentoring and committee tasks through the International Association of Medical Science Educators.

Samiksha Prasad is the Assistant Professor in Medical Education at the Dr. Kiran C. Patel College of Allopathic Medicine, Nova Southeastern University. She has been using multiple learning modalities within integrated, preclinical medical education curricula. Dr. Prasad serves as the Director of curriculum thread and course blocks. Dr. Prasad is highly engaged in student mentoring. She serves as a medical student advisor and mentors students for research. She has actively conducted funded research on several diversity-centered topics and published in peer-reviewed journals. She has also been involved in community engagements that focus on encouraging health and sciences. Dr. Prasad has been on the editorial board for peer-reviewed journals and grant decision committees. Dr. Prasad earned her Bachelor's in Technology degree in Biotechnology (Genetic Engineering) from Sam Higginbottom Institute of Agriculture Technology and Sciences, India. She obtained her Ph.D. degree in the Department of Microbiology and Cell Science at the University of Florida, USA. She continued on at the University of Florida to complete Post-Doctoral research on Parasitic Proteomics and Immunology, where her research was focused on host-pathogen interactions. During this time, she also taught undergraduate, graduate, and medical science courses at multiple institutions including the University of Florida, Santa Fe College, and Polk State College in Florida, USA.