Integration of Racial, Cultural, Ethnic, and Socioeconomic Factors Into a Gastrointestinal Pathophysiology Course
published online 16 October 2008.
Background & Aims
Our study describes a faculty development program to encourage the integration of racial, cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic factors such as obesity, inability to pay for essential medications, the use of alternative medicine, dietary preferences, and alcoholism in a gastrointestinal pathophysiology course.
Methods
We designed a 1-hour faculty development session with longitudinal reinforcement of concepts. The session focused on showing the relevance of racial, ethnic, cultural, and socioeconomic factors to gastrointestinal diseases, and encouraged tutors to take an active and pivotal role in discussion of these factors. The study outcome was student responses to course evaluation questions concerning the teaching of cultural and ethnic issues in the course as a whole and by individual tutorials in 2004 (pre-faculty development) and in 2006 to 2008 (post-faculty development).
Results
Between 2004 and 2008, the proportion of students reporting that “Issues of culture and ethnicity as they affect topics in this course were addressed” increased significantly (P = .000). From 2006 to 2008, compared with 2004, there was a significant increase in the number of tutors who “frequently” taught culturally competent care according to 60% or greater of their tutorial students (P = .003). The tutor's age, gender, prior tutor experience, rank, and specialty did not significantly impact results.
Conclusions
An innovative faculty development session that encourages tutors to discuss racial, cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic issues relevant to both care of the whole patient and to the pathophysiology of illness is both effective and applicable to other preclinical and clinical courses.
§Tufts University Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
⁎⁎Department of Ambulatory Care and Prevention, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, Boston, Massachusetts
Reprint requests Address requests for reprints to: Helen M. Shields, MD, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02215. fax: (617) 667-5826
Conflicts of interest The authors disclose the following: Dr Shields received support for this project from the Leo E. Wolf and Natalie W. Wolf Fund at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Dr White received support for this project from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts. The remaining authors disclose no conflicts.
ABSTRACT