All medical schools in the U.S. must be certified by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education – which is sponsored by two organizations: the American Medical Association and the Association of American Medical Schools. The latter organization is now pressuring medical schools to adopt left-wing positions on "diversity, equity and inclusion" – often referred to as "DEI."
The AAMC's just-released document – "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Competencies Across the Learning Continuum" – lays down guidelines for those who develop curricula within the medical field and those learning to practice medicine or continue their professional development. Following are some excerpts from that document's introduction:
"Since the founding of the United States, there have been systemic health and health care inequities grounded in racism, sexism, homophobia, classism, and other forms of discrimination that still permeate our current health system."
"Recent broad societal calls for social justice and the disparate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have added urgency to the need for improved integration of diversity, equity, inclusion, and anti-racism in medical education and training."
"The origins of these inequities are often rooted in systemic racism and discrimination and are compounded by social risk factors that influence health …. Academic medicine has a responsibility to address and mitigate the factors that drive racism and bias in health care …"
AFN spoke with Scott Shepard of the National Center for Public Policy Research about the proliferation of DEI in various professional fields – specifically, the medical field.
"All of the accrediting agencies – [for example] the American Bar Association – have tried this. [Now they're] trying to force professional schools and graduate and undergraduate schools, professors and students, to sign up for this horrifying loyalty oath," he says, referring to the AAMC's report.
The Free Beacon points out that the AAMC contends a medical school graduate will have to identify "systems of power, privilege, and oppression" … learn "the impact of various systems of oppression on health and health care (e.g., colonization, White supremacy, acculturation, assimilation)" … and incorporate "dimensions of diversity into the patient's health assessment and treatment plan."
The Free Beacon also reports that doctors are warning the imposed DEI guidelines will lower standards at medical schools and endanger lives. As for his prediction, Shepard expects a flurry of lawsuits.
"I expect the accrediting agencies to be sued," he states bluntly. "I expect the medical schools to be put – in a sense – in a 'Catch 22' where they have to follow the rules to keep their accreditation … but if they follow the rules they'll get sued."
In addition, the Beacon reports a group of black doctors last year denounced these same guidelines, claiming they would "perpetuate and potentially exacerbate disparities."
