Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

The Pediatric Residency Program at SUNY Upstate is dedicated to actively recruiting, engaging, supporting, working with and educating residents from diverse backgrounds. The department recognizes the value of diversity in education and the care of patients and their families.

The Department of Pediatrics has made several strides toward improving our climate for Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI). These activities include:

• Establishment of a strong and active Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee composed of residents, faculty, and staff
• Developing a resident-initiated and departmentally supported mentoring program for residents who identify as historically minoritzed groups or as an underrepresented minority in medicine (URiM)
• Collaborations with Upstate affinity groups for underrepresented minoritized faculty, staff, residents, and students.

We provide comprehensive and compassionate care to patients in Syracuse and Central New York, and address the needs of patients from all races, gender identities, and economic backgrounds.

Some characteristics of our community:

• More than 80% of the children and adolescents seen in our outpatient general pediatrics clinic are insured by Medicaid. Learn more at: https://www.syracuse.com/data/2022/04/child-poverty-in-syracuse-3-sets-of-numbers-tell-a-troubling-story.html
• We are one of the largest refugee resettlement areas in New York State, bringing together and supporting people from all over the world. Learn more at: https://refugeeandimmigrant.org/
• We offer a large specialized clinic providing gender-affirming care to transgender adolescents.
• Our outpatient programs include:

           o Care of children in foster care: ENHANCE
           o Care of abused children: CARE
           o Adolescent medicine
           o Refugee Health Clinic
           o Inclusive fitness and adaptive design

Educational Programming:

• Strong programs in advocacy, including an advocacy interest group and international health
• Longitudinal elective experience for third-year residents in an outpatient walk-in clinic providing acute care to Native American children at the Onondaga Nation Clinic
• Integration of health equity discussions into Morbidity and Mortality sessions and other grand rounds presentations
• Use of a novel bias checklist, created by Dr. Amy Caruso Brown for informing educational materials
• Partnerships with programs for children with disabilities, focused on adaptive technology, inclusive recreation, and adapted sports
• Educational workshops on topics including ethics, mitigating bias, and dealing with microaggressions
• A program-level mistreatment policy to guide residents, including contact information for institutional resources.