NORFOLK, Va. - Eastern Virginia Medical School and Norfolk State University are announcing a new partnership to address healthcare disparities and medical workforce.
The new program will be called the EVMS-NSU Research and Training Incubator for Collaboration in Health Equity Initiative (ENRICHe), according to a press release.
The program is meant to help address healthcare disparities among minorities, as well as help expand career paths for NSU students interested in working in healthcare.
Both schools will contribute $250,000 to help fund research into health disparities. The program will also help pre-med students at NSU find opportunities at EVMS for mentorship.
"That means we intend to make the difference that can create lives that are not lost far too early, that we do not have the loss of our babies because we have not been able to get people the resources we need," said Dr. Javaune Adams-Gaston, the president of NSU.
Part of the goal is to help create a medical workforce that looks like the community, school leaders said. There are many fewer African American doctors in Virginia, compared with their overall population, they said.
"Several research has shown one of the main aspects to address mental health inequities in neighborhoods is to have the health workforce mirror the community that they are practicing in," said Dr. Alfred Abuhamad, the president of EVMS.
Student said they were excited about the program and said they understand the power of representation. "Having representation in that room of care, it brings kind of an ease to the patient," said Myles Parks, a junior pre-med student.
"I know if I see a physician that looks like me I'm going to be a lot more relaxed, a lot more open," said Wayne Cochran, a junior pre-med student.
