Doctor warns ‘woke’ agenda is gaining a foothold in medical schools: ‘Diversity above merit’

A recent study by the Association of American Medical Colleges shows that diversity, equity and inclusion policies have taken a prominent place in American medical schools, and a medical expert told Fox News Digital that this raises a serious risk to the quality of care and freedom of expression.

“Medical schools are devoting more and more time to these social and political issues, leaving less time for the study of medicine,” said Dr. Stanley Goldfarb, Chairman of the Board of Do No Harm, to Fox News Digital in response to published analysis by the AAMC, which essentially serves as a report card on how its medical schools are faring in implementing DEI policies that critics have described as a “woke” agenda.

The AAMC report states that “assessing policies, practices and programs at the institutional and school levels is a first step in ensuring that academic medicine is well placed to cultivate a hand -diverse and culturally prepared workforce, advancing excellence in inclusion, promoting the advancement of equity and strengthening engagement with local communities.”

The report, which looked at 101 medical schools, showed that 43% of schools “have promotion and tenure policies that specifically reward scholarship and faculty service on DEI topics” and the number is highlighted in red. , suggesting that this figure is insufficient. The report also shows that 100% of schools “have admissions policies and practices to encourage a diverse class of students.”

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Goldfarb, a board-certified kidney specialist who previously served as associate dean of the curriculum at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School, told Fox News Digital that these DEI policies place less emphasis on merit and more on the criteria of diversity, which ultimately means quality of care. suffers.

“Patients will be considered members of a group based on skin color rather than individuals,” Goldfarb said. “Diversity has been elevated above merit and achievement as the basis for selecting medical students and promoting faculty. This must lead to a decline in the quality of the medical workforce and undermine a fundamental American idea that you can achieve your goals through hard work and talent.”

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Additionally, the report shows that policy advocacy has been embedded in the DEI process in medical schools, as evidenced by the statistic showing that 75% of medical schools say they “advocate for policies and/or legislation at the local, state or federal level related to its mission of diversity, inclusion and equity.

Goldfarb told Fox News Digital that policy advocacy has become a “major focus” of DEI’s efforts in medical schools.

“The efforts by every university and medical school to secure the vote are a thinly disguised effort to support Democratic candidates, as it is well known that undergraduates and graduate students vote overwhelmingly for Democrats” , Goldfarb said.

“Medical schools are all dependent to some degree on state or federal funding, so strong lobbying efforts are supported by all of these institutions. They have strong incentives to support local political powers and in the most major cities, where medical schools are typically located, that means supporting Democratic administrations.”

The AAMC defended its DEI report and policies in a statement to Fox News Digital, saying its medical schools have “an obligation to address the factors that foster racism and bias in health care” as well. than “preparing physicians who are culturally sensitive”.

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“There is strong evidence that historically marginalized people and people living in poverty disproportionately experience poor health and insufficient access to quality care,” said Dr. David A. Acosta, Chief Diversity Officer and the inclusion of the AAMC in the release. “These inequalities are often rooted in systemic discrimination, including racism, within the country’s health systems, which contributes to lower quality care.”

Acosta said the AAMC also has an obligation to “support institutions to be globally diverse, equitable, and inclusive to support these goals” and explained that the report is a tool his group uses to help medical schools.” to identify areas for improvement to create a holistic strategy where DEI is integrated into all areas of operations and missions.”

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Goldfarb says Do No Harm, which reports that its mission is to “protect health care from a radical, divisive and discriminatory ideology.” will continue to speak out against the “language of progressive policies” that are “designed to cover up”.

“This language has obscured the true nature of what ‘woke’ politics means and the public has not been properly informed of what is at stake,” Goldfarb said.

“Do No Harm is dedicated to educating the public and its legislative representatives about the true nature of wakeful activity in health care and medical education. We believe that raising awareness of initiatives will allow the public to appreciate the risks to the system health care and thereafter, to the health of the American people.”