Overview
The Penn Internal Medicine Residency Urban Health Equity Track is a two-year training pathway designed for residents interested in dedicating their careers to health equity leadership. Key components of the curriculum include participation in a 2-week summer educational intensive, development and implementation of a capstone health equity project in partnership with a community organization, and engagement with community-based clinical sites. Applications will be reviewed during the winter of the PGY-1 year.
Track Goals
- Increase exposure to and comfort with urban health equity topics through a series of lectures and experiential learning sessions
- Example topics: Healthcare and Incarceration, LGBTQ+ Health Disparities, Food Access, Trauma-Informed Care, Immigrant and Refugee Care, Care for Unhoused Individuals, Health Services/Disparities Research, Legislative Advocacy for Physicians
- Equip trainees to serve as leaders in health equity-focused careers within the realms of community-based clinical care, medical education, health services research, healthcare administration, or policymaking
- Establish meaningful and sustainable relationships with local community partner agencies in West Philadelphia
Track Requirements
All Urban Health Track residents will be expected to:
- Attend all didactic and experiential sessions during the summer 2-week intensive course
- Identify a health equity focus area and develop a corresponding capstone community engagement, health disparities research, and/or legislative advocacy project over the course of two years
- Participate in lunchtime and evening sessions (e.g. lectures, journal clubs, group volunteering, “work in progress” discussions) as clinical schedules allow
- Work at a community site for a clinical or project-focused half day at least once per outpatient block
- Disseminate findings and deliverables from the capstone project experience at a regional or national meeting, as well as during the final year of residency in an “Urban Health Report” noon conference session
Track Director: Nichole Smith, MD