Abstract

Issue:  Systemic health disparities in the U.S. are unlikely to be successfully addressed without evidence-based, multilevel policy interventions.  To date, most research investigations and policy interventions have been focused on incentivizing career choice aimed at ameliorating health disparities and correcting medical bias in practicing doctors.  Much less work has been undertaken on utilizing educational policy, practices and data to affect positive change “upstream” of the current practicing healthcare workforce.  An underutilized area in educational policy and predictive analytic use is in the medical school admissions process.  Admissions policies for selective educational institutions have been tailored in the past to provide for the public good and therefore represent a natural first intervention area.

Author(s): John Burkhardt, Mahshid Abir, Steven Durning