Page 24 - Layout 1

MEDICAL YEAR
IN REVIEW

continued from page 23

likely to stay in that local community
for their professional careers even if
they leave to study in a different lo-
cation. By recruiting, developing, and
cultivating individuals from a com-
munity to become part of the health-
care workforce, they are more likely
to be retained to serve their home
base or areas that are in most need
(e.g., medically underserved areas).
Grow-your-own strategies can also
address the mismatch in diversity as
the recruitment occurs within the
local communities where diverse
populations reside. This approach
does not necessarily provide imme-
diate healthcare workers that can
enter the current labor force but is
instead a long-term strategy that
would enable local communities to
more effectively address their long-
term healthcare workforce needs.
Diversifying the biomedical
workforce is not solely for the sake of ent/guardian who did not complete a
change in population dynamics, but there four-year college degree), low-income in-
are four significant reasons why diversify- dividuals and women.
ing the biomedical workforce is impor-
tant: (1) to advance cultural competency, It is by no surprise that Bexar
(2) increase access to high-quality health County is growing and has
care services, (3) strengthen the medical
research agenda, and (4) ensure optimal become more racially and
management of the health care system. It ethnically diverse than ever.
has also been widely documented that
African-American, Hispanic, and Native The number of Hispanic residents has
American physicians are much more likely grown from 1,006,958 in 2010 to 1,201,366
than white physicians to practice in med- residents in 2018, an increase of 19.3 %. Al-
ically underserved areas. though Hispanics have contributed to the
All health professions, and specifically largest growth, African-Americans and
medicine, have long been recognized as Asians have also contributed. Reports show
having a lack of diversity among individ- there was a 44.8 % increase among Asian
uals underrepresented in medicine which American residents since 2010, from level health professions programs, to in-
3
include but is not limited to Hispanics or 103,222 to 149,453 in 2018. . crease the number of medical students
Latinos, African-Americans, first-genera- Meeting the needs of an ever-growing committed to practicing in underserved
tion (someone whose parents/guardians diverse population requires commitment areas; recruit and train students from un-
did not complete a four-year college de- and strategic investments. Recommenda- derrepresented regions (i.e., rural coun-
gree or a student raised by a single par- tions might include expanding college- ties, urban metros) and backgrounds and

24 San Antonio Medicine • December 2019