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AAMC Files Brief Supporting U-Michigan Admissions Policy AAMC Panel Defining Physician Roles Within Bioterrorism Education Innovations in Medical Education: "Teaching - and Learning - Through Collaboration" Wanted: More Anatomy Instructors Viewpoint: Avoiding Faculty Burnout A Word from the President "A Day in the Life of a Medical Student"
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AAMC Files Brief Supporting U-Michigan Admissions PolicySupreme Court scheduled to hear case April 1The AAMC filed an amicus brief Feb. 18 supporting the University of Michigan in Grutter v. Bollinger, one of two affirmative action cases being considered by the U.S. Supreme Court. The case, which was accepted by the high court in December, challenges the University of Michigan Law School's use of race as a factor in its admissions policies. Oral arguments are scheduled to begin April 1. The amicus briefs filed in the case could challenge the previous record of 62 briefs filed in the Supreme Court's 1978 Bakke decision, which also was related to affirmative action. The AAMC argues in its brief that a physician workforce capable of effectively meeting the needs of a diverse society can exist only if medical schools are able to consider race and ethnicity when selecting students. Without race-conscious admissions policies, medical schools would be unable to graduate sufficient numbers of minority physicians to serve the country's ever-growing minority populations, expand areas of academic research, and raise the general cultural competence of doctors, the brief states. "A reasonable balance in the racial and ethnic composition of our nation's physician workforce is essential, if we are to care for an increasingly diverse population. No alternative to affirmative action in medical school admissions exists for meeting that need," said AAMC President Jordan J. Cohen, M.D. "In ruling on the affirmative action cases now before it, the Supreme Court must provide a clear means for allowing the medical and health professions to fulfill their solemn societal obligation," Dr. Cohen added. The case for diversityVirtually all U.S. medical schools that are permitted to take race and ethnicity into consideration during the competitive admissions process. The AAMC contends that if schools were to ignore the race of applicants accepted to medical school, the percentage of students from underrepresented minority (URM) backgrounds would fall from 11 percent to no more than 3 percent. This is at a time when the main URM groups - African-Americans, Native Americans, Mexican-Americans, and mainland Puerto Ricans - make up 23 percent of the United States' general population. In the brief, the AAMC outlines the key reasons why society has a critical need for more minority physicians. One is that as the proportion of minorities living in this country increases, existing healthcare disparities will also grow. It has also been established that minority populations generally suffer greater health problems than non-minorities, but despite this fact, minorities tend to receive less optimal care than Caucasians, the brief states. In addition, the brief cites that because numerous studies have indicated that minority physicians are more willing to practice in underserved population areas, a greater number of medical school graduates from minority groups would help address healthcare disparities. More minority doctors not only would result in a more appropriate supply of physicians in underserved areas, where a substantial proportion of minorities reside, but would also offer more minority patients the option to be treated by physicians of their own race and cultural background. Empirical studies provide evidence that, when given the choice, minority patients tend to choose and be more satisfied with physicians of their own ethnic or racial background. Trust in the healthcare delivery system tends to increase if patients see at least some providers from backgrounds similar to theirs, research shows. Strengthening researchAnother argument cited for the continued use of racial components in admissions policies is the need to broaden and strengthen the country's healthcare research agenda. Because the national healthcare agenda is largely determined by individual researchers who, in turn, tend to investigate problems that they see and have an interest in, the need for researchers from minority backgrounds is critical. Research conducted by minorities tends to focus on issues that disproportionately affect certain racial and ethnic populations. Even the federal government has recognized this fact, noting in a National Institutes of Health statement that the "ability to sustain and even increase the momentum of recent scientific progress and our international leadership in medical research depends on recruitment, training, support, and retention of diverse biomedical investigators." The need for more culturally competent doctors and healthcare managers is another reason to strive for diversity in medical schools, the brief states. It notes that "students who are exposed to racial diversity in education have greater ability to understand and consider multiple perspectives; greater satisfaction with their educational experience; and greater tolerance and less prejudice in the educational setting and beyond." If admissions offices around the country were to rely solely on academic credentials such as test scores and GPAs when accepting students, the number of minorities in medical school would decrease dramatically. Most URM applicants have lower GPAs and score lower on the MCATs than do white and Asian applicants, the brief notes. The reasons for this are not clearly understood, but may include: poorer quality schools available to many minority students, lower educational attainment of their parents, and stereotypical attitudes that stifle academic achievement. But despite these facts, medical schools admissions officers have successfully identified the qualities and skills minority applicants need to succeed as medical students. A reflection of these successful admissions policies is the fact that more than 90 percent of the admitted URM students graduate, comparable to the overall graduation rate of approximately 96 percent. - Suria Santana, ssantana@aamc.org Editor's Note: For more information, continuous updates, and to read the complete brief, visit www.aamc.org/diversity. |
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