Universities and professional schools across the West have been reacting to the Supreme Court’s recent decision rejecting affirmative action. For the head of one of the handful of medical schools in the region, the ruling didn’t come as a surprise, but he is preoccupied by some potential implications.
“I worry that populations that we very much need in medical school may be scared by the Supreme Court ruling and may not apply,” said Marc Kahn, dean of the relatively new Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. “I worry about that.”
He pointed to data that show medical outcomes are improved by a diverse workforce, and he said medical schools have a moral imperative to train physicians that reflect the populations they serve.
In an amicus brieffiled in the case, the Association of American Medical Colleges - joined by the American Medical Association and numerous other major health care groups - described ensuring diversity among those studying to become physicians as a “medical imperative.”
“As an overwhelming body of scientific research compiled over decades confirms, diversity literally saves lives by ensuring that the nation’s increasingly diverse population will be served by healthcare professionals competent to meet its needs,” the brief read.
But even with the ruling, Kahn said tools remain to achieve that.
“I think we're going to find different ways to get there is what we're going to have to do,” he said.
Some medical educators are hopeful because the ruling seems to leave the door open for so-called holistic review of candidates, including their life experiences and racial background, according to a report in Stat.
Kahn said his school’s admissions process considers socioeconomic background, commitment to community and service, as well as what he called the journey traveled by applicants.
“We look at the journey taken for someone to get to the med school application process and certainly somebody who's overcome adversity, those folks tend to do better in medical school than a similar person who has not,” he said.
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
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