Social Impact and Belonging at the UW Department of Family Medicine and Community Health
Social impact and belonging is integral to the mission and vision of the UW Department of Family Medicine and Community Health (DFMCH). We partner with the UW School of Medicine and Public Health (SMPH) and UW Health to promote belonging and health equity within our institution. We also collaborate with academic peers nationwide on strategies and models for addressing challenges related to social impact and belonging at other institutions.
Strategic Framework
TRANSFORMATION: We will create and sustain systems and resources that support health equity, social impact, and belonging.
RECRUITING: We will develop and support intentional systems for recruiting and selecting leadership, faculty, staff, and residents for all backgrounds. We will actively identify and support pathways to strengthen representation across clinical, research, and educational teams and leadership.
UNLEARNING AND LEARNING: We will provide access to educational curriculum, tools, and resources that help faculty, staff, and clinical learners in cultivating practices that promote belonging across our environments.
SUSTAINING AND RETAINING: We will establish and maintain policies and practices, including systems of mentorship, that support belonging for all.
TRACKING AND TELLING: We will develop and test clear metrics that help us assess and refine our work. We will share stories and strategies of building trust to support health equity and belonging in academic medicine.
We Believe That
Health Equity addresses assumptions in policies and practices and centers the culture and actions of the department on the ability of all communities to achieve optimal health and well-being.
Belonging-centered practices assure that all are welcome to create and bring their full selves to the department.
Bringing a healing attention first to our unconscious assumptions allows us to mindfully engage in social impact and belonging work.