This committee was created in 2018 and is chaired by Dr. Myrna Alexander Nickens, Professor of Medicine and the first female interventional cardiologist in Mississippi. All of us who serve on the committee do so because we believe in our mission and vision of promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in our department, institution, and state. We aim to achieve this with varying methods and will be implementing several initiatives over the coming year. 

We encourage all faculty and trainees to consider taking the institution’s Diversity and Inclusion Champion course. This course is offered every January for free and can be completed online over several months and covers topics related to unconscious bias, cultural competence, diversity metrics, and accountability. Several of us have completed the course and feel it serves to provide a sound knowledge base about what diversity, inclusion, and equity truly mean as it relates to our workplace and world. 

If you find areas that have room for improvement related to diversity, equity, and inclusion or if you would like to join the committee, please reach out to any of us and let us know. If you are a trainee, consider joining the Trainees for Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity (TIDE) committee, a new GME-wide group that will focus on improving diversity in GME programs, advocating for and supporting trainees in minority groups, and improving the care delivered to minority patients. Below are our Mission and Vision for the committee for your review.

Mission

to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion within our department, institution, and community 

Vision

We aim to create and foster a community that allows all people to thrive and prosper. Our goal is to advance equity and inclusion for every aspect of human difference, including but not limited to socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, language, nationality, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, geography, disability, and age. We strive to maintain a culture that celebrates diversity in order to create a workplace that reflects the communities we serve. 

Sincerely,

Myrna Alexander Nickens, MD, Chair

Elizabeth Paine, MD, Secretary

Amanda Clark, MD

Jessie Harvey, MD

Demondes Haynes, MD

Leandro Mena, MD

Rahat Noor, MD

Charletta Scott-Bennett, MD

Jose Subauste, MD

Calvin Thigpen, MD

Richard Wells, MD