FY21 Year in Review
On July 29, Dr. Forrester presented, "Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion in Psychiatry: FY21 Year in Review, Lessons Learned, & Next Steps." Click here to download the presentation.
We would like to highlight some successes in the recent months, including examples of how to make real and impactful changes in our own areas of influence:
May
In May, a group of patient care leaders came together to advocate for a re-evaluation of the personal care products we provide at the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC) for patient use. Dorhanja Nichols, Monika Baumann, Kendra Jones, PCS leaders, and infection control and supply chain leaders evaluated alternative products to better fit the needs for diverse skin and hair types, and identified two locally owned, minority-led companies.
The suggestion of diversifying our personal product line has generated conversation and interest on our campus and at a system level. We are working with supply chain leadership to make these products available to all University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) hospitals. We will be piloting the products on select patient care units, and the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry units will be a pilot site!
Also in May, Drs. Forrester, Gordon-Achebe, and Han moderated a UMMS Community Conversation titled, "Not All Wounds Are Visible, A Community Conversation: Unburdening Racism, Injustice and Inequity to Create a Path Forward." This event was sponsored by the UMMS Community and Health Policy Office, and is a first step at direct community engagement for our Committee. Click on this link to view the discussion.
June
In June, we celebrated Juneteenth. June 19 is a holiday celebrating the emancipation of those who had been enslaved in the state of Texas. In 1863, during the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which declared more than 3 million slaves living in the Confederate states to be free. More than two years would pass, however, before the news reached African Americans living in Texas. When the state’s residents finally learned that slavery had been abolished, the former slaves immediately began to celebrate with prayer, feasting, song, and dance.
In honor of Juneteenth, Rachael Funk and Victoria Parson created a Juneteenth presentation, which can be downloaded.
July
In July, we began training for our implementation team, which will help individual Divisions/workgroups to implement their diversity goals.
The implementation team includes: Anique Forrester, Kimberly Gordon-Achebe, Tiffany Beason, Dana Cunningham, Sylvia Huntley, Laurel Kiser, Madeline Marks, Brittany Patterson, Andre Thompson, and Pamela Walker.