Diversity - Pediatric Residency

The Pediatric Diversity Council

Our Mission Statement

The Pediatric Diversity Council at the University of Maryland is a multidisciplinary workgroup of residents, faculty, staff, and departmental leadership committed to supporting a diverse and inclusive learning environment while promoting educational opportunities for learners to become culturally competent physicians. The Diversity council is Co-Chaired by Dr. Paula Newton, a Pediatric Endocrinologist and co-leader of the Subspecialty Pathway, and Dr. Matthew Grant, the Pediatric Residency Assistant Program Director.

The Pediatric Diversity Council was established in 2017 with the goals of:

• Increasing number of URM* pediatric residents and ongoing support of current residents
• Fostering a learning environment that encourages URM students to go into pediatrics
• Increasing educational opportunities for learners to become culturally competent physicians
• Supporting learners, faculty and staff through initiation of pivotal conversations surrounding ongoing racial tensions, inequality, and social injustice

*The Association of American Medical College (AAMC) defines Underrepresented in Medicine (URM) as those racial and ethnic populations that are underrepresented in the medical profession relative to their numbers in the general population.

We stand firmly with the Baltimore community and believe that Black Lives Matter.

The Pediatric Diversity Council supports efforts across the department to promote a culture we can be proud of:

• Our resident Social Justice Curriculum, centered on Social Determinants of Health, is integrated into our conference series & focused on preparing residents to meet the healthcare needs of their patients, while being culturally competent physicians
• Our Diversity Grand Rounds, held quarterly, focus on mitigating bias, creating dialogue & engaging the entire department in important conversations
  • Some of this year’s Grand Rounds include Anti-Bias & Bystander Training, Microaggressions and presentations by our community partners
• Check out our Anti-Racism “Do the Work” Groups where faculty, residents & medical students meet up to discuss books, articles, podcasts & more
• Outreach events to support the community of West Baltimore

For residents interested in more intensive research and advocacy efforts, we have added a focused Social Justice Track, which includes a protected half-day per week to focus on efforts directly benefiting social justice initiatives for our program and community. This effort serves to enhance our work and provide residents with a focused project and protected space to explore this work within their medical training journey.

At University of Maryland, the Department of Pediatrics, along with the Pediatric Diversity Council, and the Pediatric Residency Program recognizes and values all races, cultures, religions, sexual orientations, & genders identities.

Diversity Social Hours 

When scheduling your interview, join us for one of our Diversity Social hours scheduled throughout the interview season! Our residents and faculty can’t wait to meet you!

Don’t hesitate - please contact us with any questions at PedsDiversityCouncil@som.umaryland.edu.