Moreover, certain states—Florida and Texas in particular—have begun to remove or outright ban DEI from public education. The Texas passed SB17, which curbs the ability of public universities to incorporate DEI initiatives into training, hiring, admission, or education.⁹ In earlier versions of the bill, this would have been enforced to the extreme that if faculty discuss DEI, they will have to take a year without pay for the first offense and will be fired for the second.⁹ Similarly, Florida passed a law called the Individual Freedom Act, commonly known as the Stop Wrongs to Our Kids and Employees (STOP WOKE) Act, which prevents employers—including universities—from promoting DEI in any form.¹⁰ While opponents cite these measures as blatantly racist and sexist, lawmakers in support of these restrictive bills claim that they actually uphold equality because diversity, equity, and inclusion endorses a culture of exclusion for those not considered diverse.

Preventing inequality

Laws and proposals like the ones in Florida and Texas may damage the public education system and threaten to impact DEI in residency training and medical education as well. If DEI is banned from primary school to graduate-level education, our society will create a physician workforce that is less diverse and less well versed in the socioeconomic intricacies affecting our patients. Broader laws attempting to cut off all employers from incorporating DEI would directly impact resident education and negatively affect both patient care and physician well-being.

Currently, there is no Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education requirement to include DEI training in resident education, nor is there a recommended standardized curriculum. But, if we hope to preserve and build on a culture of tolerance and diversity, medicine must encode DEI education into residency training. Emergency medicine, long a pioneer and advocate for social justice, is primed to take the lead.

Dr. Görgens is ACEP Now’s 2022–23 resident fellow leading the Resident Voice column.

Dr. Fernandez s a graduate of Northwell Northshore-LIJ emergency medicine residency where he served as chief resident. His passion includes education, DEI, and mentorship. He is born and raised in New York, NY, and will be pursuing his fellowship at Mount Sinai.

References

1. QuickFacts: United States. The United States Census Bureau website. Accessed June 12, 2023.
2. Association of American Medical Colleges. 2022 Physician Specialty Data Report: Executive Summary. Association of American Medical Colleges website. Accessed June 12, 2023.
3. Snyder JE, Upton RD, Hassett TC, Lee H, Nouri Z, Dill M. Black representation in the primary care physician workforce and its association with population life expectancy and mortality rates in the US. JAMA Netw Open. 2023;6(4):e236687.
4. Nunez-Smith M, et al. Health care workplace discrimination and physician turnover. J Natl Med Assoc. 2009;101(12):1274-1282.
5. Chisholm LP, Jackson KR, Davidson HA, Churchwell AL, Fleming AE, Drolet BC. Evaluation of racial microaggressions experienced during medical school training and the effect on medical student education and burnout: A validation study. J Natl Med Assoc. 2021;113(3):310-314.
6. Dyrbye L, et al. Physicians’ experiences with mistreatment and discrimination by patients, families, and visitors and association with burnout. JAMA Network Open. 2022;5(5):e2213080.
7. Landry A, Dark C. Only 6 percent of Med School Grads Are Black—Here’s Why That’s a Major Problem for the U.S. Courier website. Published August 14, 2020. Updated/archived November 23, 2020. Accessed June 12, 2023.
8. Woodward M. Cardiovascular disease and the female disadvantage. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2019;16(7):1165.
9. Creighton B, et al. Senate Bill Number 17, 88th Texas Legislature Regular Session. Texas Legislature website. Published March 10, 2023. Updated May 29, 2023. Accessed June 12, 2023.
10. Bell, et al. CS/HB7 (2022). Florida House of Representatives website. Published January 11, 2022. Last Updated April 22, 2022. Accessed June 12, 2023.