Our Values

• We respect the diversity of our professional and patient communities.
• We recruit, retain, and celebrate a diverse group of trainees, faculty, and staff, and expand possibilities for those from underrepresented communities.
• We support and protect members of racial and ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, veterans and military families, members of LGBTQ+ communities, immigrants and refugees, and the many others who enrich our community.

Programs

We have five main initiatives that offer DEI activities, programming, and support:

• The Minority Recruitment and Retention Committee provides career mentoring, leadership development, and social networking for faculty, fellows, residents, and medical students from under-represented groups. The faculty leaders for this program are David Ortiz Melo, MD, and Omobonike Oloruntoba Sanders, MD. 
• The Program for Women in Internal Medicine provides career development and peer mentoring programs for women students, residents, fellows, and faculty. The faculty leader for this program is Daniella Zipkin, MD.
• Civility Champions is a cohort of Department of Medicine faculty and trainees who have been trained to offer informal support in response to incidents of bias, harassment, or other unprofessional behaviors. The faculty leader for this program is Jane Gagliardi, MD.
• Stepping In 4 Respect is a multi-institution collaboration led by the University of Virginia called “Stepping In: Creating a Culture of Respect and Inclusion.” Trained Department of Medicine Civility Champions lead the Stepping In 4 Respect workshops. This new component of our civility efforts is designed to teach faculty and staff the skills needed to step in (be an “upstander”) in the moment, with a particular focus on race-, ethnicity- and gender-based incidents. Participation in the Stepping In 4 Respect workshops is part of an IRB-approved prospective quality improvement study to assess change in attitudes and behaviors toward discrimination and harassment in the work and learning environment. The faculty leader for Stepping In 4 Respect at Duke is John Duronville, MD.
• The Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism Committee (DEIAR Committee) is working to transform the Department of Medicine into an anti-racist department where all faculty, trainees, and students thrive. Members develop concrete short-term and long-term goals, focusing on targets that are actionable and measurable. The faculty leader for this committee is Julius Wilder, MD, PhD.

Initiatives

In 2020, the Department of Medicine began a formal effort to evaluate our past, respond to the moment, and reinvigorate our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

This means incorporating DEI values right from the start of each and every project and initiative and empowering each and every faculty, trainee, and staff member to always look for opportunities to become a more equitable department.

In addition to strengthening the programs above, here are other ways we are responding:

• We are expanding the pool of Civility Champions and providing each champion with advanced bystander training.
• We are offering Stepping In 4 Respect "upstander" training to all members of the Department of Medicine (faculty, trainees, staff).
• We are developing training for departmental and division leaders to strengthen our skills in building and leading diverse groups, lessening implicit bias, and promoting equity and inclusion.
• We established new positions on the Minority Recruitment and Retention Committee to enhance our focus on recruitment and retention of Black faculty and Latinx/Hispanic faculty. Learn more.
• We are creating a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee to identify, promote, prioritize, and facilitate structural changes. It will also serve as a communication hub and clearinghouse to help us all efficiently keep track of the many DEI/anti-racism activities across Duke.
• We will host Health Equities and Disparities in Medicine, a monthly presentation for ongoing dialogue about DEI/anti-racism topics. This presentation is part of the new Duke Medicine Duke Medicine Learning, Education, and Discussion Series.

The Department of Medicine is aligned with the efforts across the Duke University School of Medicine and Duke University Health System. Learn more about the Duke Health commitment to Moments to Movement, the School of Medicine's Office of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI), and see learning opportunities available as foundational elements for dismantling racism and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion for leaders in the School of Medicine.