Online Program

288571
Longitudinal review of minority healthcare career development programs: A means to an end in improving health equity


Wednesday, November 6, 2013 : 11:18 a.m. - 11:34 a.m.

Knitasha Washington, DHA, MHA, FACHE, Health Administration, KVW Management Enterprise, Olympia Fields, IL
James Johnson, PhD, School of Health Sciences, Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI
Rupert Evans, DHA, MPA, FACHE, Associate Professor, Department of Health Administration, College of Health and Human Services, Governors State University, University Park, IL
Regnal Jones, PhD, Campus of Illinois Technical Institute, Chicago Area Medical and Health Career Program, Chicago, IL
Detmer Wells, MA, Urban Health Program, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL
Minority health professions enrichment programs (MHPEP) have improved the viability of the healthcare workforce in promoting health equity. A historical review of policy and funding efforts concludes variation in strategies to address minority health issues. Reductions in governmental programs such as Title VII and anti-Affirmative Action in education perpetuated environmental chaos and inverted much of the progress made in graduating increased numbers of underrepresented minority (URM) health workers. Some of the most compelling cases for change faced by the Obama administration in developing the health reform law included addressing the issue of health disparities from an access, cost and quality perspective while ensuring a plan to sustain the supply of health professionals at the rate of the rapidly growing diverse population. The University of Illinois at Chicago Urban Health Program (UIC UHP) is a MHPEP designed to support recruitment, retention and graduation of URMs into the health professions and was resulted from a legislative mandate developed in response to community protests over the lack of adequate health care services to the poor and underprivileged. To date UHP has graduated more than 5000 URMs into the health professions. A ten-year longitudinal case analysis of the UIC UHP program performance outcomes and perspectives of URM providers identified the sustainable critical success factors that are proven to be deployable within traditional academic programs in support of strategic health equity methodologies and developing enhanced parity among patients and providers.

Learning Areas:

Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Advocacy for health and health education
Diversity and culture
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Systems thinking models (conceptual and theoretical models), applications related to public health

Learning Objectives:
Discuss the minority health professions enrichment program MHPEP model as a means to improving health equity Describe the critical success factors for strategic implementation of MHPEP model into a traditional academic educational environment Explain the historical impact of policy and funding on MHPEP as a minority health issue priority and innovative recommendations Identify indicators for tracking and measuring program efficacy Demonstrate policies and practices that influence racial and ethnic diversity in graduate health professions training programs. Identify the variations that are reflected in the differences in entrance requirements, discipline-specific criteria, and institutional mission of MHPEP programs. Evaluate the role that institutional support and buy-in play in the success and longevity of MHPEPs

Keyword(s): Education, Minority Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I have served as the principal investigator for the research on minority enrichment programs and the development of the health care workforce. I have completed research training through the Doctor of Health Administration Program at Central Michigan University.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.