Diversity and Inclusion
Dallas is home to a large, diverse population of patients. In the 2019 US Census Bureau, 41.7% of the city of Dallas’ inhabitants identified as Hispanic or Latino, 24.3% as African American, and 3.4% as Asian. As an institution that serves the above demographic, we recognize that diversity provides enrichment in several ways, including increased cultural humility and culturally competent care, addressing and decreasing health disparities, and the development of innovative ideas to deliver care to our patients and communities.
Our Commitment:
The UTSW Department of Emergency Medicine is committed to enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion. We strive to create an inclusive environment, which fosters excellence in healthcare delivery, education, innovation and discovery. We recognize and value the uniqueness in our patients who come from a wide variety of life experiences. We seek to elevate their dignity and humanity in times of need. We value the differences that our faculty, trainees, and staff bring. We recognize the unique strengths in each member of our team. Our individual varied skill sets, viewpoints, and experiences synergize into a strong department. We are awesome! Whatever characteristics make you unique, we are a family committed to helping you thrive.
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Dustin Williams, MD
Residency Program Director "To me diversity is a marker for excellence. Differing backgrounds, cultures, perspectives, communication styles, interests, are what makes us that much more enriched." |
Larissa Velez, MD
Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education “Where I am today is because others believed in me, opened doors for me and gave me opportunities. I want to pay this forward and help others be afforded opportunities that will allow them to thrive and excel in their careers. A diverse workforce is a better, stronger workforce.” |
Women in UTSW Emergency Medicine
We are proud to have incredible women in leadership positions in our department , starting with our chair, Dr. Deborah Diercks, our former residency program director, Dr. Larissa Velez, who is now the Associate Dean of Graduate Medical Education at UT Southwestern, and our Vice Chair of Administrative Affairs, Dr. Angela Gardner . Below are some of the female faculty in our department involved in leadership:
Deborah Diercks, MD
Department Chair of Emergency Medicine “Through understanding, accepting, and valuing differences between people, we can create a clinical and training environment that offers respect in actions and words to our patients and each other.” |
Angela Gardner, MD
Vice Chair of Administrative Affairs |
Ava Pierce, MD
Associate Chair of Diversity and Inclusion “Diversity, inclusion, and equity are imperative to excellence. By building diverse innovative teams, we can create a climate of inclusion where everyone thrives and works together to decrease health disparities.” |
Larissa Velez, MD
Associate Dean of Graduate Medical Education Vice Chair of Education |
Christine Kulstad, MD
Emergency Medicine Clerkship Co-Director |
Mary McHugh, MD
Emergency Medicine Clerkship Co-Director |
Jodi Jones, MD
Ultrasound Director, Clinical Ultrasound Fellowship Emergency Medicine Representative, UTSW Faculty Collaborative on Racial Equality and Diversity for Clinicians, Scientists and Educators “Diversity is having a seat at the table, inclusion is having a voice and belonging is having that voice be heard. These words keep us balanced in what we do and what we strive to attain." |
Melissa Smith, MD
Assistant Program Director |
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
Our committee is committed to continually increasing its efforts towards diversity, equity, and inclusion. We strive to create an environment that is a safe-haven for our department’s members and our community, regardless of race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexual orientation, or religion.
Since the inception of UTSW EM's Diversity and Inclusion Committee, it has continued to grow to further the mission of the department and the institution. We are passionate and committed to our goals below:
Since the inception of UTSW EM's Diversity and Inclusion Committee, it has continued to grow to further the mission of the department and the institution. We are passionate and committed to our goals below:
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1. Increasing the recruitment of Underrepresented in Medicine (URM) in our residency class, highlighting the visibility of URM residents and faculty at our program through our outreach, and recruitment events, and increasing student mentorship in undergraduate medical education.
2. Community outreach and mentorship by establishing longitudinal mentorship programs with local high schools, colleges and medical schools with large proportion of URMs. 3. Partnership with key local organizations committed to serving our community. 4. Establishment of a curriculum that includes discussions surrounding disparities in health outcomes in people of color and women, the LGBTQ+ community, immigrant/refugee communities, and other vulnerable populations. Our curriculum also includes education in cultural competency and implicit bias. 5. Involvement of URM faculty in graduate medical education to increase cultural awareness when caring for a diverse group of patients and in leading diverse teams. 6. Mentorship between faculty and residents to retain URM graduates in academic medicine and leadership. |
Mark Rendon, MD
Co-Chair, UTSW EM Departmental Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee “As members of our departmental family, we recognize that our collective strength and sense of unity come from the unconditional respect and celebration of our unique talent and character. We are at our best when we encourage community, diversity of thought, and conversation, so that every individual in our department may feel welcomed, empowered, and limitless.” |
Meet Our Resident Diversity and Inclusion Committee Leadership
“Valuing and learning about the unique backgrounds and life experiences that each person brings to the table develops a team that promotes growth and employs talent.”
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"Diversity should not be viewed as an optional initiative. With diversity of people comes diversity of thought, and it is that diversity that bridges gaps thought to be insurmountable and opens the door for true collaboration and innovation."
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UT Southwestern is committed to optimizing work-life balance for its residents and faculty. Some examples of this include up to 12 weeks for parental leave for the birth or adoption of a child, childcare at or near campus (including sick child care options), and several lactation rooms on campus and at each hospital. We are also proud to boast the largest class of female residents to date in the Class of 2023 as shown below!
