Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Standing Committee
PAAA has created a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Standing Committee to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion in our organization and our profession. The committee’s efforts and deliverables will focus on two areas:
-
The Profession
-
Education and Patient Care
Profession
Our professional initiatives will focus on opportunities to reduce barriers to entry into the medical profession and the A/I specialty. We see no shortage of DEI work being done by others, including but not limited to the PA Medical Society and the ACAAI. Rather than reinvent the wheel, we are compiling examples of programs already in place to serve as resources and models for consideration and possible adoption. See the growing list here and please feel free to recommend programs for inclusion using the link below.
​
​
Education and Patient Care
The Education and Patient Care focus starts with being mindful of the composition of our speakers for the annual meeting and including topics that explore disparities in health care, such as that seen with asthma (See Health disparities in allergic and immunologic conditions in racial and ethnic underserved populations: A Work Group Report of the AAAAI Committee on the Underserved) For this initiative, we again plan to compile already-available resources from relevant organizations for reference. Additionally, we envision continuing to assemble a diverse lineup of influential speakers and including educational topics that identify disparities in health care and behaviors, such as microaggression and implicit bias that negatively impact the patients in our care and our relationships within our health care teams.