Prioritizing Health Equity
UMass Chan Medical School has much to offer regarding vaccination rollout and broader knowledge about SARS-CoV-2. By leveraging the expertise, time and energy of our Medical School community, and in these endeavors our institution has been unwavering in prioritizing health equity. Some recent examples of the research, educational and community-minded work underway at UMass Chan Medical School to support an equitable response to the coronavirus pandemic, specifically regarding vaccine allocation, include:
- Four hundred nursing, medical and graduate students have volunteered to staff inoculation sites in and around Worcester. Working at the direction of the Worcester Department of Public Health, students are vaccinating first responders and elderly and homeless populations.
- UMass Chan Medical School is a clinical trial site for the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, and endeavors to recruit trial participants from diverse communities.
- Faculty who are expert in community-engaged research are organizing and hosting a dozen virtual community forums to meet with select, multilingual, vulnerable populations in Central Massachusetts and answer any and all questions about the vaccine.
Additionally, educators, scientists and learners have come together to address health equity and make a positive impact during this pandemic:
- In its largest research grant in history, UMass Chan Medical School was selected by the National Institutes of Health to coordinate a nationwide push to make rapid COVID-19 testing widely available.
- The Medical School helped Worcester Public Schools purchase and distribute Wi-Fi hotspots to students learning remotely.
- Faculty are using grant funding to enhance representation of Black and Hispanic populations in COVID-19 research and, more broadly, working on a first-of-its-kind nationwide program to enhance diversity in the academic biomedical workforce.
Student Equity and Inclusion
Student Diversity and Advocacy Organizations
Student Government Alliance (SGA)
SGA Diversity Pillars
Drive Initiative
UMass Chan LGBTQ Initiatives
Join the UMass Chan Pride List