University of Richmond works with Virginia-Nebraska Alliance to close the gap in minority health care
March 27, 2009
A flood of recent research shows health care for minorities is much poorer than for the average American.
Experts believe a large factor is that significantly fewer African, Native and Hispanic Americans become doctors, nurses and dentists.
But historically black colleges and universities have formed a partnership, the Virginia-Nebraska Alliance, with a group of predominantly white counterparts including the University of Richmond, to assist and encourage more minorities to enter the health professions.
According to a study by the University of Nebraska Medical Center, minority Americans make up more than 25 percent of the population, yet represent only 9 percent of nurses, 6 percent of doctors and 5 percent of dentists.
Dr. Louis Sullivan, former secretary of health and human services and Alliance president and chairman of the board, has observed that minority patients seek care more often and respond better to treatment when they interact with health care professionals they identify with.
"The best outcome occurs when we have well-trained individuals who also understand the culture, speak the language, respect the traditions and generate the trust and communications with their patients."
University of Richmond joined the Alliance in 2006, offering a comprehensive preparation program for the Medical College Admission Test (MCAT). John Vaughan, the university's director of pre-health education, created Richmond's highly successful preparation course for its own undergraduates in 2003. Taught by professors as a bonus for undergraduates bound for medical school, the program has helped Richmond students achieve an 85-90 percent medical school acceptance rate.
Vaughan adapted the two-semester course into an all-inclusive, five-week summer program for students attending Alliance schools. Richmond contributes resources, faculty, classrooms, labs, materials, room and board, and even a $1,500 student stipend.
Ten to 12 students have attended each of the past three summers. And this year, Alliance students are participating in the regular 26-week session with Richmond undergraduates.
The results for HBCU students reflect those for Richmond's undergrads. In 2008, their MCAT scores increased on average from 17.5 to 23.3, which Richmond interim associate provost Kirk Jonas asserts can mean the difference between medical school acceptance and rejection. Individual's scores have jumped as much as nine points, opening greater opportunities to Alliance students.
Richmond maintains a unique role in the Alliance as neither a medical school nor HBCU, but a university with strong pre-med programs and a commitment to sharing them to help correct the disparity in American health care.
"It's sort of a subtle point, but as opposed to sitting on the sidelines and saying, 'It's not our issue,' UR's participation in the Alliance is a good example of creating engagement where an opportunity might not be readily apparent," says Jonas.
The Alliance's success has been so strong that Florida and North Carolina colleges are planning to replicate the program.