The Wayne State University School of Medicine’s Office of Graduate Medical Education and Ascension Providence Rochester Hospital have been selected to participate in National Initiative VIII JEDI: Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion. The initiative is sponsored by the Alliance of Independent Academic Medical Centers, a national membership organization of independent teaching hospitals based in Chicago, Ill.

The initiative is the only national and multi-institutional collaborative of its kind in which medical residents lead multidisciplinary teams in quality improvement projects aligned to their institution’s strategic goals. Twenty-seven AIAMC member hospitals and health systems were selected to participate in National Initiative VIII.

“I am very proud of our institution's recent acceptance to the AIAMC's newest national initiative, which will focus on Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion,” said Anne Messman, M.D., FACEP, associate dean of Graduate Medical Education for the School of Medicine. “This 18-month initiative will serve to strengthen our programs’ already strong emphasis on these subjects to ensure that our trainees and faculty continue to provide the best care to their patients and that our clinical learning environments remain diverse and inclusive.”

The office-and-hospital team was selected based upon demonstrated commitment to better understanding and improving justice, equity, diversity and inclusion in their clinical learning environments. A leadership team will collaborate with select hospitals from across the United States in developing and implementing a plan that will positively impact both individual performance and institutional culture. Participants will attend four learning sessions as well as monthly networking teleconferences and educational webinars during the initiative.

“It is time for leaders in health care to take an active stand for justice, equity, diversity and inclusion,” said Kimberly Pierce Burke, AIAMC executive director. “Inclusion is at the foundation of effective interdisciplinary care and -- with diversity -- core to excellence. We are delighted that Wayne State University and Ascension Providence Rochester Hospital will help us lead this critically important work.”

For more information on the AIAMC and its initiatives, visit www.aiamc.org.