Preadmissions programs and enrollment of underrepresented minority students before and during successful challenges to affirmative action. (1/278)

The association between the percent change in first-year and total underrepresented minority student enrollment and the presence of preadmission programs at Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) accredited medical schools was assessed before and during successful legal and legislative challenges to affirmative action. The percent change in under-represented minority student enrollment was determined by comparing enrollment data for the academic years 1993-94 and 1996-97. Schools were categorized as having either a negative or positive percent change in their enrollment of underrepresented minority students. Logistic regression was used to determine the association of the percent change in under-represented minority student enrollment and the presence of a preadmission program while controlling for schools' financial support and the presence of postbaccalaureate programs. Fifty-six percent of the included medical schools had preadmission programs. Schools with a positive percent change were significantly more likely to have preadmission programs compared with schools with a negative percent change. There was no association between the presence of preadmission programs and the percent change in total enrollment. These results indicate that the presence of preadmission programs is positively associated with increases in first-year underrepresented minority student enrollment during the successful challenges to affirmative actions.  (+info)

Defending diversity: affirmative action and medical education. (2/278)

Affirmative action programs of all types are under attack legally and politically. Although medical schools have not been specifically targeted, their affirmative action programs, like others in higher education, are potentially in danger. This article examines the current legal status of affirmative action in medical education and concludes that a refurbished defense of such programs is essential if they are to survive impending judicial and political scrutiny. An analysis of existing case law and available evidence suggests that a carefully reinvigorated diversity argument is the tactic most likely to pass constitutional muster, as well as the justification most likely to blunt growing public and political opposition to admissions policies that take race and ethnicity into consideration.  (+info)

Difficulties with anonymous shortlisting of medical school applications and its effects on candidates with non-European names: prospective cohort study. (3/278)

OBJECTIVE: To assess the feasibility of anonymous shortlisting of applications for medical school and its effect on those with non-European names. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Leeds school of medicine, United Kingdom. SUBJECTS: 2047 applications for 1998 entry from the United Kingdom and the European Union. INTERVENTION: Deletion of all references to name and nationality from the application form. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Scoring by two admissions tutors at shortlisting. RESULTS: Deleting names was cumbersome as some were repeated up to 15 times. Anonymising application forms was ineffective as one admissions tutor was able to identify nearly 50% of candidates classed as being from an ethnic minority group. Although scores were lower for applicants with non-European names, anonymity did not improve scores. Applicants with non-European names who were identified as such by tutors were significantly less likely to drop marks in one particular non-academic area (the career insight component) than their European counterparts. CONCLUSIONS: There was no evidence of benefit to candidates with non-European names of attempting to blind assessment. Anonymising application forms cannot be recommended.  (+info)

Medical schools, affirmative action, and the neglected role of social class. (4/278)

Medical schools' affirmative action policies traditionally focus on race and give relatively little consideration to applicants' socioeconomic status or "social class." However, recent challenges to affirmative action have raised the prospect of using social class, instead of race, as the basis for preferential admissions decisions in an effort to maintain or increase student diversity. This article reviews the evidence for class-based affirmative action in medicine and concludes that it might be an effective supplement to, rather than a replacement for, race-based affirmative action. The authors consider the research literature on (1) medical students' socioeconomic background, (2) the impact of social class on medical treatment and physician-patient communication, and (3) correlations between physicians' socioeconomic origins and their service patterns to the disadvantaged. They also reference sociological literature on distinctions between race and class and Americans' discomfort with "social class."  (+info)

Randomisation and resource allocation: a missed opportunity for evaluating health care and social interventions. (5/278)

Equipoise is widely regarded to be an essential prerequisite for the ethical conduct of a randomised controlled trial. There are some circumstances however, under which it is acceptable to conduct a randomised controlled trial (RCT) in the absence of equipoise. Limited access to the preferred intervention is one such circumstance. In this paper we present an example of a randomised trial in which access to the preferred intervention, preschool education, was severely limited by resource constraints. The ethical issues that arise when conducting randomised trials in health care are considered in the context of trials of social interventions. In health, education and social welfare, effective interventions are frequently limited due to budgetary constraints. Explicit acknowledgement of the need to ration interventions, and the use of random allocation to do this even in the absence of equipoise, would facilitate learning more about the effects of these interventions.  (+info)

The black and white of dental education in the United States: enrollment and graduation trends. (6/278)

Data from the American Association of Dental Schools (AADS) and American Dental Association (ADA) were evaluated for trends in dental school enrollment and graduation. In the last 20 years, African-American enrollment has varied from a low of 4.7% (1980-1981) to a high of 6.9% (1988-1989). This figure declined to 5.2% in 1997-1998. African-American graduation percentages in the last 20 years have varied between 3.4% (1979) and 5.4% (1996). The future percentage of graduating African-American dentists is projected to decline. Historically, minority dental education institutions have educated a significant percentage of African Americans and continue to educate approximately 40% of graduating African-American dentists. Strategies to increase recruitment of African Americans include: 1. Greater support for minority primary and secondary education including the establishment of mentoring programs. 2. Dental education outreach programs to minority secondary school and college students. 3. An increase in affirmative action programs. 4. Greater support for minority dental education institutions. 5. Student loan forgiveness programs, which aid recruitment of minority faculty and dental students who either teach or serve minority communities.  (+info)

Processes for obtaining nonmedical exemptions to state immunization laws. (7/278)

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to determine the specific processes required for obtaining religious and philosophical exemptions to school immunization laws. METHODS: State health department immunization program managers in the 48 states that offer nonmedical exemptions were surveyed. Categories were assigned to reflect the complexity of the procedure within a state for obtaining an exemption. RESULTS: Sixteen of the states delegated sole authority for processing exemptions to school officials. Nine states had written policies informing parents who seek an exemption of the risks of not immunizing. The complexity of the exemption process, in terms of paperwork or effort required, was inversely associated with the proportion of exemptions field. CONCLUSIONS: In many states, the process of claiming a nonmedical exemption requires less effort than fulfilling immunization requirements.  (+info)

Prediction of student performance on the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination Level I based on admission data and course performance. (8/278)

To predict student performance on the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX-USA) Level 1 examination based on academic performance during the first 2 years, stepwise regression analysis of COMLEX-USA Level 1 performance with preadmission grade point averages, Medical College Admission Test scores, and academic performance was performed on the class of 2000 to develop three formulae that were then used to predict performance on COMLEX-USA Level 1 for the class of 2001. Models ranged in accuracy of predicting the pass/fail status from 95.2% (all available data) to 96.8% (first-year grades and admissions data). A predictive model for student performance on COMLEX-USA Level 1 can be developed and has a high degree of accuracy. The model with the most variables available to choose from predicts the most failures.  (+info)