AMA accepting applications for new Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellowship

The American Medical Association’s (AMA’s) Center for Health Equity has announced an open call for applications for its inaugural Medical Justice in Advocacy Fellowship, presented in collaboration with the Satcher Health Leadership Institute (SHLI) at Morehouse School of Medicine.

The fellowship, which runs from Sept. 2021–⁠Nov. 2022, is a training program “designed for physicians that seek to advance health equity in their communities,” the AMA says in a statement.

The deadline is March 31, 2021, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern.

The program aims to develop a new generation of physician-led advocacy and remove barriers that marginalized people face in healthcare systems.

AMA describes the fellowship as a “first of its kind,” training physicians to become better advocates through an “anti-racist, equity-centered learning framework.”

It’s open to all physicians and residents with a demonstrated interest in health equity and advocacy. Program requirements include a virtual learning component, with in-person or virtual components in Washington, D.C., and Chicago, Illinois.

Click here to apply for the fellowship, and visit the AMA website to read more.

RACISM A PUBLIC HEALTH THREAT

The fellowship announcement follows a November 2020 policy change from the AMA that officially recognizes racism as a public health threat, and a June commitment to fight systemic racism.

“The AMA recognizes that racism negatively impacts and exacerbates health inequities among historically marginalized communities. Without systemic and structural-level change, health inequities will continue to exist, and the overall health of the nation will suffer,” AMA Board Member Willarda V. Edwards, M.D., M.B.A., said in a statement.

“As physicians and leaders in medicine, we are committed to optimal health for all and are working to ensure all people and communities reach their full health potential. Declaring racism as an urgent public health threat is a step in the right direction toward advancing equity in medicine and public health while creating pathways for truth, healing, and reconciliation.”