Yale New Haven Hospital physician residents recently received a $20,000 grant from the Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine (AAIM) for their project, “STEP-uHP: A Service-Learning Initiative to Close Opportunity Gaps for Disadvantaged Students in Health Careers.”
Grantees include George Agyapong, MD, and Katherine Copeland, MD, residents with the Yale School of Medicine Department of Internal Medicine’s Primary Care Residency Program.
“This is a big win for all who create space for a diverse, inclusive, and thriving healthcare workforce and equitable care,” Dr. Agyapong said. “We can and must imagine more equitable, viable, and community-engaged solutions to disparities on health career paths.”
STEP-uHP’s mission is to fix a lack of early mentoring and career exposure, which exclude many aspiring doctors and health professionals who do not have the socioeconomic and academic means.
Dr. Agyapong and Dr. Copeland designed a service-learning and mentoring program that teaches students transferable skills (such as medical scribing). The program also provides early exposure to healthcare careers and access to coaching on pursuing medical and health careers.
“With this funding, we are able to recruit and support our first cohort of scholars through our mentorship and scribing curriculum,” Dr. Copeland said. “We cannot wait to recognize the potential of this program to reduce disparities in access to healthcare careers and see the downstream effects.” Other STEP-uHP creators include Michael Gyimah, MD, and Carolyn Gonzalez, MD.
