In recognition that diversity strengthens our teams and that addressing healthcare inequities is essential in optimizing patient care, the University of Michigan Congenital Heart Center leads several DEI initiatives. Our DEI Committee coordinates and leads a number of activities spanning the Congenital Heart Center. We also have an active Women in Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery group that meets regularly. There are several quality improvement and DEI research initiatives ongoing including grant funded work to examine the national landscape of women and minorities in the field and barriers to advancement, efforts to understand the impact of SES on single ventricle outcomes across the state, analyses of the influence of race and ethnicity on our surgical outcomes, and many others.
Our team also participates in a number of medical school, hospital, and campus-wide activities including the Department of Pediatrics DEI recruitment and faculty development efforts, and The University of Michigan Office of Institutional Equity Title IX Advisory Committee. Finally, we are active in many national efforts including the Society of Pediatric Cardiology Training Program Directors DEI taskforce and the American College of Cardiology’s Women in Cardiology group.
Beyond the Division of Pediatric Cardiology, the University of Michigan has a strong commitment to diversity both at the Michigan Medicine and the University at large, with organized groups that provide support and education:
- The Michigan Medicine Office of Health Equity and Inclusion (OHEI)
- Committed to developing mechanisms for inclusion, diversity and cultural humility among staff, students, trainees and faculty at the health center, and championing diversity and inclusion for our patients, community, and society.
- The University of Michigan central campus DEI
- Many initiatives including the annual DEI Summit, a campus wide community assembly with keynote speakers and numerous school, college and unit events across campus.
Diversity in Ann Arbor and the surrounding area
The University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor campus is a community made up of more than 70,000 individual students, faculty and staff members. People from every state in the country and from nearly half the countries around the world are part of the U-M community. The city of Ann Arbor has one of Michigan’s highest foreign-born populations (nearly 20%) mainly due to the career opportunities through the University and associated industries.
Michigan's I-94 corridor traversing the southern part of the state has been described as a bracelet of racial and ethnic diversity around the wrist of the mitten-shaped Lower Peninsula. Michigan's “bracelet of diversity” stretches from southwest Michigan, where Hispanic migration has helped grow diverse communities, through the university towns of Kalamazoo and Ann Arbor, to the changing city and suburbs of metropolitan Detroit.
The city of Detroit has seen the biggest gain in diversity in the country over the last decade. Nicknamed “the Motor City”, Detroit is seeing a major urban revival, offering many highly rated restaurants, craft cocktail bars and breweries, and renowned arts-and-culture attractions. In addition to newer businesses, the Detroit area is home to many older ethnic communities with restaurants and markets to explore, including the large Polish community in Hamtramck, and the popular “Mexicantown” in the south city.
The Greater Detroit area is home to the largest, oldest and most diverse Arab American community in the United States. The Arab American National Museum in Dearborn, Michigan explores the many cultures, history and traditions of the Arab World and the people who trace their heritage there. The Museum also sponsors a food tour called Yalla Eat! where you can discover area restaurants, markets and sweet shops to enjoy delicious and delectable cuisine!