The American Medical Association addresses minority physician professional issues and minority health issues on an ongoing basis. Here are activities and projects that are related to the issues addressed by the MAC. Listings of non-AMA resources do not necessarily indicate endorsement by the AMA. Links here may take you off the AMA Web site.

In JAMA: African-American physicians and organized medicine
An article in the July 16 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) explores the history of segregation and racism in medicine. Former AMA President Ronald M. Davis, MD, further discusses this topic in an accompanying commentary.

Minority Scholars Award recipient honors others
In April, Charles (Chuck) Branch, recipient of the American Medical Association Foundation’s Minority Scholars Award honored others at a special event originally planned to honor him.  He hosted a traditional Native American feast and “give-away” to recognize those people who helped him during his first 2 years of school.

Dr. Staggers receives prestigious Jack B. McConnell, MD Award for Excellence in Volunteerism
Frank E. Staggers, Sr., MD, is the recipient of the 2008 Jack B. McConnell, MD Award for Excellence in Volunteerism. This award recognizes the work of senior physicians who provide treatment to U.S. patients who lack access to health care. Dr. Staggers was nominated by the MAC for this award and was a founding member of the AMA’s Advisory Committee on Minority Physicians.

New online video covers universal HIV screening
Approximately 1 million people in the United States are believed to be infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). A quarter of them may be unaware they are infected, thus not getting necessary treatment and risking the unintentional transmission of HIV to others.

The AMA released the new online educational video, "Universal HIV screening and reducing HIV disparities" as part of its Educating Physicians on Controversies and Challenges in Health series. The five-minute streaming video aims to educate physicians on the implementation of universal HIV screening in practice as a strategy to reduce the transmission of HIV, which disproportionately affects racial and ethnic minorities.

AMA leader Commentary: Extinguishing inequities in health care
In a Jan. 21 AMNews article, AMA President Ronald M. Davis, MD, shares his thoughts on eliminating inequities in health care and provides a progress report on the 2007 strategic objectives of the Commission to End Health Care Disparities for which Dr. Davis has served as co-chair with Sandra Gadson, MD, past president of the National Medical Association.

Exercise: a dose of medicine we all can use
Read this commentary that was mentioned by AMA President Ronald M. Davis, MD, at the AMA-MAC Caucus.

AAMC reports enrollment increases, more Black and Hispanic males apply
The Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) has released data indicating that the 2007 entering class to U.S. medical schools is the largest in the nation’s history. This medical school applicant pool also included more applicants from racial and ethnic minorities, with the number of black male applicants and Hispanic male applicants increasing by 9.2 percent.

Latest in AMA online series addresses race and ethnicity data collection
A new online educational program from the AMA can help physicians see the benefits of building a more comprehensive base of patient data on race and ethnicity, and identify barriers and solutions for collecting this information from patients.

Part of the AMA's online video series Educating Physicians on Controversies in Health, "Data on race and ethnicity: How and why it should be collected in medical practice" aims to show physicians the need for reliable and accurate demographic data truly reflective of patient populations, how the data can be collected and how the data can improve the quality of care. The data will be helpful to clinicians and researchers in learning more about the causes of health care disparities and how physicians can work to eliminate them. The data will also help physicians seek new ways to provide better care for their minority patients.

If you have a minority physician or minority health related news item that you would like us to consider for inclusion on this page, please e-mail us with the information at mac@ama-assn.org.

Culturally Effective Health Care

Lists AMA resources and products related culturally effective health care.

Racial/Ethnic Healthcare Disparities

Lists materials and projects related to racial and ethnic healthcare disparities.

Diversity in Medical Education

Lists AMA policy related to diversity in medical education.

American Medical News Articles on Culturally Effective Health Care

Provides a listing of articles from AMNews on culturally effective health care.

MAC policy and resolution process

Information on being involved in AMA-MAC policy and resolution development.