A Community-Based Health Care Disparities Curriculum: Perceptions From Multispecialty Residents, Community Partners, and Program Directors.
Abstract
Background Graduate medical education (GME) focuses predominantly on clinical practice, and some specialties lack effective models for in-depth health care disparities (HCD) education, even though it is required. Objective We describe the perspectives and feasibility data of residents, program directors, and community partners across multiple specialties at the Medical College of Wisconsin regarding a community-based HCD curriculum that integrates community outreach with discussion-based educational sessions. Methods In academic years 2022-2023 and 2023-2024, first-year residents from 5 and 8 specialties participated in 2 half-day community outreach sessions and 3 half-day educational sessions. Residents (n=99), program directors (n=16), and community partners (n=5) were surveyed for perceptions of and satisfaction with the curriculum. Resident responses to survey questions were aggregated into topic areas. Faculty time, community partner donations, speaker fees, and average cost per resident for food and transportation were calculated for feasibility. Results Residents (99 of 129, 77%) reported overall satisfaction with educational sessions (median, 8; IQR, 6-10; 66% survey participation) and outreach experiences (median, 10; IQR, 8-10; 68% survey participation). Program directors (16 of 16, 100% survey participation; median, 9; IQR, 7-10) and community partners (5 of 5, 100% survey participation; median, 10; IQR, 10-10) reported overall satisfaction with the curriculum. Program directors reported satisfaction with logistics (median, 8; IQR, 7-9) and community partners with hosting residents (median, 10; IQR, 10-10). Costs averaged $9 per resident per educational session, and $38 per resident per outreach experience. Faculty time commitment averaged 32 hours per academic year. Conclusions This study demonstrates that integrating community engagement into HCD education in residency is feasible and well-received by residents, program leadership, and community partners.