Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania

The Daily Caller reported, "In May 2022, the University of Pennsylvania School Of Medicine exempted students from five historically black colleges and universities applying to their school from taking the Medical College Admissions Test, used to gauge a student’s readiness for medical school, if the student is accepted into an eight-week study program."

The school will, “Expand Mandatory Implicit Bias Training (also for Medical Students).” The school said, “Workshops have been developed and announced to the student body.”

The school’s ACT strategic plan recommends that the school, “Expand unconscious bias training to all levels and explore periodic refresh” and “Restructure the “difficult patient” standardized patient (SP) session; implement a patient bias preparation program for students.”

One of the strategic priorities of the school's Office of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity is to "Increase deployment of Unconscious Bias Workshops."

The school will, “Restructure PSOM Curriculum and Operations to Emphasize AntiRacist Education.” The school said, “Updated Medical Education Program Objectives are nearing completion. The committee began this work in January 2021 and we expect the project will be available for review beginning Fall 2021.” The school also said, “We have asked the Curriculum office to do a curriculum map on Race, Health Disparities, and Social Justice and Advocacy in our curriculum; we will establish goals/objectives and ascertain where our gaps are and revise our curriculum with content expertise as required…New medical education program objectives have been drafted and are in the process of being approved by UMEC and Medical Faculty Senate. One of the four pillars focuses on an anti-racist education.”

The Department of Family Medicine and Community Health’s task force has been “reviewing residency curriculum to strengthen the focus on anti-racism and equity within the formal curriculum.”

The Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy’s instructors reviewed and updated their existing and new syllabi to ensure that readings and content increase inclusivity and awareness of ADEI issues.

The Gold Humanism Honor Society Chapter at Perelman School of Medicine has been working on its "Health Disparities and Anti-Racist Curriculum Initiatives" in order to "develop and incorporate information about healthcare disparities and possible approaches to mitigating disparities throughout the Mod 2 preclinical lectures." The chapter's hope is that "by incorporating this information directly into core Mod 2 courses, we can encourage medical students to see these disparities as equally central to the health of our patients as a good understanding of physiology is."

The school’s ACT strategic plan recommends that the school create a, “System for Bias Reporting with committee to review and address reports.”

The school has a system for "Reporting Events Related to Bias and Racism for University Employees." The school said, "Reporting events related to bias and racism strongly encouraged. Remember that verbal assault, is still assault."

The school will, “Expand Mandatory Implicit Bias Training.” The school said, “Trainings are required to be members of certain committees, including MD and MD/PhD Admissions and external faculty recruitment.”

Unconscious Bias Training is “Required training for Penn Medicine Faculty, Staff and Students by April 1, 2021.”

The Department of Family Medicine and Community Health has an Anti-Racism Task Force. The Department of Family Medicine and Community Health’s task force has been “representing the department in city-wide protests for social and racial justice causes.”

The school offers “Racial Equity Initiatives,” which include “Race, Racism, & Antiracism Collections at the Penn Libraries” that link to a resource guide that lists Ibram X. Kendi’s “How to Be an Antiracist.”

The school also offers students the MedEdPORTAL, which is “a collection of resources to provide educators with practice-based, peer-reviewed content to teach anti-racist knowledge and clinical skills and elevate the educational scholarship of anti-racist curricula. The new resources will support a community of collaborators dedicated to the elimination of racism in medical education.”

The CPUP Committee on Anti-racism offered resources from “Anti-Racism Efforts at The University of Pennsylvania,” including a “Juneteenth Event featuring Dr. Ibram X. Kendi.”

The CPUP Committee on Anti-Racism provides resources such as “Knowledge Link: Inclusivity, Unconscious Bias and Cultural Sensitivity” program (which includes “Cultivating Cultural Competence and Inclusion,” “Center for Health Equity Advancement,” and “Unconscious Bias”) and Ibram X. Kendi’s “How to be an Anti-Racist.”

The Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy has an Anti-racism, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (ADEI) committee. The Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy’s ADEI committee will “ensure a number of seminars are dedicated to the topic of health equity.”

The Department of Medical Ethics and Health Policy “shares ADEI articles and resources on a weekly basis in our departmental announcements and also shares updates internally through a quarterly newsletter with information on upcoming initiatives, activities, and events related to ADEI.”

The school’s ACT strategic plan recommends that the school, “Design forums to engage in ongoing group/team conversations about anti-racism” and “Establish and support affinity groups.”

As part of the school's "Action for Cultural Transformation (ACT)" strategy, it offers resources and books on "EXPLORING BIAS, RACISM, RACIAL AND SOCIAL JUSTICE, AND HEALTH INEQUITIES," which include "How to Be an Antiracist" by Ibram X. Kendi and "White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People To Talk About Racism" by Robin DiAngelo.

The school's Office of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity is "Requesting Nominations for the inaugural Champion in Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity Award: An Award of Excellence."

The school's "CPUP Committee on Anti-Racism" has "American Libraries Reading for Change: Booklist Recommends Anti-Racism Titles for all Ages," which includes Ibram X. Kendi's "How to Be an Antiracist" and Layla F. Saad's "Me and White Supremacy: Combat Racism, Change the World, and Become a Good Ancestor."

The school's Office of Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity said, "The events of spring 2020 resulted in an intensification of efforts that created the first strategic initiative to unite the Perelman School of Medicine (PSOM) and the University Health System (UPHS) in efforts to build a more inclusive culture and address residual elements of structural racism. We saw over 96% of you engage in unconscious bias training, the launch of IDEAL XP, the creation of an internal infrastructure to further support efforts in the community and a review of policies and procedures to ensure a more equitable and just environment for all."

The Penn Institute for Immunology links to an "Anti-Racism Resources" document, which is called "Anti-racism resources for white people."

This "Anti-racism resources for white people" is linked to by the Penn Institute for Immunology.

As part of its "Alumni Colloquium Series 2022-23," the school hosted "CHIBE/HP Works-in-Progress Seminar: Systemic Discrimination: Theory and Measurement."

The school's Office of Academic Affairs provides unconscious bias resources for students, faculty, and staff including a webinar titled "Understanding Unconscious Bias in the Health Professions and How to Mitigate It."

In 2021, students and the steering committee of the school's Medical Scientist Training Program "established the Penn MSTP Annual Anti-Racism event to focus on issues at the intersection of racial justice, diversity, medicine and science." The most recent event was held on March 20, 2023, and was titled "Cite Black Women: A Critical Praxis."

The school's DSRB (Developmental, Stem Cell, and Regenerative Biology) Anti-Racism Committee issued a statement of "purpose" which reads in-part as follows: "The tragic and troubling deaths of members of the Black community have most poignantly highlighted the persistent and pervasive issue of systemic racism in our country and in academic science. We seek to dismantle institutionalized and societal barriers that exclude Black and People of Color (POC) from entering science and hinder their success within the field. The onus of dismantling racism should be shouldered collectively, especially by those who have been successful because of white privilege. We, the members of DSRB, believe drastic and ongoing measures are required to remedy these issues." The committee also outlines many initiatives it believes are necessary to increase diversity and to combat racism within the Biomedical Graduate Studies Department.

The school's Office of Inclusion, Diversity and Equity published its 2021-2022 Annual Report titled "Action for Cultural Transformation," which outlines past initiatives and objectives.

The school launched the Clinical Practices of the University of Pennsylvania (CPUP) Committee on Anti-Racism to make “concrete, positive and fundamental changes to reject and eliminate the longstanding and established disparities and inequities which provide support, and form the basis of racist views, actions, attitudes, and philosophies.”

The school tweeted, "In a letter to the Penn Medicine community, Dean J. Larry Jameson, UPHS CEO @kevinbmahoney , & other leaders reinforced our institution’s values in the pursuit of justice, inclusion & equity, both in health care & in the broader society."

The school tweeted, "While some medical schools & residency programs have educated students & trainees about the health effects of racism, these topics are not typically addressed in executive or academic leadership training."

The school tweeted, "Racism is a #publichealth issue."

The school tweeted, "Last week, Franklin Field overflowed to the bleachers as Penn Medicine & @ChildrensPhila joined together in remembrance of victims of systemic racism & injustice."

The school tweeted, "Today at 1pm, Penn Medicine & @ChildrensPhila knelt for 8 mins & 46 secs of silence. We joined together in remembrance of all those who have been victims of racism & in commitment to eliminating injustices & inequality. #whitecoatsforblacklives #PennTogether #PowerofPenn"

The school posted on Facebook, "In a letter to the Penn Medicine community, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania Dean J. Larry Jameson, University of Pennsylvania Health System CEO Kevin B. Mahoney, and other leaders reinforced our institution’s values in the pursuit of justice, inclusion and equity, both in health care and in the broader society: "'As health care providers, scientists, and educators, we are in a position to lead. We have profound obligations to support diversity and inclusion within our communities — to our patients, to our students and trainees, and importantly, to one another. In our words and through our actions, we have power to make a difference in the fight to ensure that hatred, bigotry, discrimination, and racism have no corner in our community. We understand the importance of social determinants as they relate to health, education, and wealth. We continue to strive to fully understand the unfortunate role of racism and biases in health care disparities, ostensibly immovable barriers to achieving equity in health. At Penn Medicine, our code of professionalism, our commitment to inclusion, and our focus on optimal health for everyone, underpins our values and actions. … We stand together in this crucial work, and send our most heartfelt support and thoughts to those who are hurting today.'"

The school posted on Facebook, "A week ago today, hundreds of members of the Penn Medicine and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia community joined together on Franklin Field in remembrance of George Floyd and the countless others who have been victims of systemic racism."

The school posted on Facebook, "Today at 1pm, the Penn Medicine and Children's Hospital of Philadelphia health care community knelt for 8 minutes and 46 seconds of silence on Franklin Field. We knelt in remembrance of George Floyd and the countless others who have been victims of racism. We knelt in commitment to our patients, colleagues, and community of color to improve their health and safety. We knelt in promise for a future devoid of inequality and injustices. #whitecoatsforblacklives #blacklivesmatter #PennTogether #PowerofPenn"

The school posted on Facebook, "Racism was damaging public health long before COVID, but the pandemic is revealing this crisis so starkly, that experts hope the problem will at last be addressed. One approach that is finding success, by literally meeting people where they are, involves community health workers."

The school posted on Facebook, "Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day! Last week, Penn Medicine celebrated Dr. King's birthday with a health equity symposium. Experts agreed that great progress has been made, but there's still much work to do."

The school posted on Instagram, "In a letter to the Penn Medicine community, Perelman School of Medicine Dean J. Larry Jameson, Penn Medicine CEO Kevin B. Mahoney, and other leaders reinforced our institution’s values in the pursuit of justice, inclusion and equity, both in health care and in the broader society: 'As health care providers, scientists, and educators, we are in a position to lead. We have profound obligations to support diversity and inclusion within our communities — to our patients, to our students and trainees, and importantly, to one another. In our words and through our actions, we have power to make a difference in the fight to ensure that hatred, bigotry, discrimination, and racism have no corner in our community. We understand the importance of social determinants as they relate to health, education, and wealth. We continue to strive to fully understand the unfortunate role of racism and biases in health care disparities, ostensibly immovable barriers to achieving equity in health. At Penn Medicine, our code of professionalism, our commitment to inclusion, and our focus on optimal health for everyone, underpins our values and actions. … We stand together in this crucial work, and send our most heartfelt support and thoughts to those who are hurting today.'"

The school posted on Instagram, "Today at 1pm, the Penn Medicine and @ChildrensPhila health care community knelt for 8 minutes and 46 seconds of silence on Franklin Field and other locations across the health system. We knelt in remembrance of George Floyd and the countless others who have been victims of racism. We knelt in commitment to our patients, colleagues, and community of color to improve their health and safety. We knelt in promise for a future devoid of inequality and injustices. ✊🏿✊🏾✊🏽✊🏼✊🏻#whitecoatsforblacklives #blacklivesmatter #PennTogether #PowerofPenn"

The school posted on Instagram, "Reflecting on #WhiteCoatsforBlackLives "One week ago today, hundreds of members of the Penn Medicine and @childrensphila community joined together on Franklin Field in remembrance of #georgefloyd and countless others who have been victims of systemic racism."

As part of the school's "Action for Cultural Transformation (ACT)" strategy, it will be "Removing inappropriate paintings and other symbols of discrimination that conflicted with our principles."