We are organizing racial justice-champion BIPOC clinicians and allies from Washington Permanente Medical Group to develop the next generation of URM healthcare leaders by creating a state-wide, multidisciplinary network of racially-conscious clinician mentors. We will engage, train and coach 65 clinician-mentors dedicated to racial justice and equity between April 21 and September 29, 2021. We will work in 12 teams, meeting 6 times to advance our understanding of racism and how to mentor URM students.
Mentorship is one of the most crucial ways to support and retain URM students throughout their educational and professional journeys. Mentors and students are mutually interdependent. Students need professional “parents,” and professionals gain intrinsic motivation from “intellectual children.” An expanding community of WPMG clinicians express support for mentoring the next generation of URM health professionals.
Mentoring is also a challenge. Potential mentors face significant time constraints, and also require support to meet the unique needs of racially-minoritized and marginalized students.
To create a supportive mentoring structure at KP, three Kaiser Permanente physicians studied community organizing for 10 weeks through the Wisconsin Leadership Development Academy. They defined their shared purpose as follows: to change the complexion of medicine and promote health equity by creating a state-wide, multidisciplinary network of racially-conscious clinician mentors by organizing and expanding a core of informed KP clinicians by the end of 2021. They decided to leverage the following strategies:
Leaders designed the Campaign for Inspired Allied Mentors (IAM), to recruit and train 65 clinicians in anti-racist mentoring through studying 6 modules in 12 groups.The Campaign, which was launched April 21, 2021, required creation of an on-line anti-racism curriculum, Mortals into Mentors, for small groups to study and discuss. This also serves as an ongoing foundation for deeper study of anti-racist mentoring.
Despite their pandemic responsibilities, approximately 50 clinicians from 13 small groups from across Washington completed the campaign. The IAM Campaign concluded September 29 with a celebration reinforcing a new sense of community, while launching a new phase of 1:1 mentoring for alumni of Virtual Rounds and iHuman.
For information about Inspired Allied Mentors, please email Ali.M.Thomas@kp.org.