Making the case for workforce diversity in biomedical informatics to help achieve equity-centered care: a look at the AMIA First Look Program

Abstract

Developing a diverse informatics workforce broadens the research agenda and ensures the growth of innovative solutions that enable equity-centered care. The American Medical Informatics Association (AMIA) established the AMIA First Look Program in 2017 to address workforce disparities among women, including those from marginalized communities. The program exposes women to informatics, furnishes mentors, and provides career resources. In 4 years, the program has introduced 87 undergraduate women, 41% members of marginalized communities, to informatics. Participants from the 2019 and 2020 cohorts reported interest in pursuing a career in informatics increased from 57% to 86% after participation, and 86% of both years’ attendees responded that they would recommend the program to others. A June 2021 LinkedIn profile review found 50% of participants working in computer science or informatics, 4% pursuing informatics graduate degrees, and 32% having completed informatics internships, suggesting AMIA First Look has the potential to increase informatics diversity.

Informatics education for translational research teams: An unrealized opportunity to strengthen the national research infrastructure

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A Population Health Informatics Workshop for Promoting Team Science Between Public Health and Nursing Informatics and Increasing Conference Participant Diversity

“…More than half of the participants had no formal informatics training with on-the-job skills development. Evaluation feedback and the notable differences in familiarity around concepts related to PHI entities/initiatives as well as technical and functional topics point to areas of The American Medical Informatics Association, one of the main informatics associations, has launched initiatives 21,22 to foster a diverse informatics workforce to ensure the development of innovative solutions that enable equity-centered care. The collaborations with Hue-MAN Partnership and the Minnesota chapter of the Hmong Nurses Association were successful in recruiting underrepresented participants.…”

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“…34 Work in biomedical informatics has emphasized the importance of exposure to informatics opportunities as early as high school in engaging underrepresented minorities and women in future careers in biomedical informatics. 35 Specialized residency tracks in areas such as hospitalist medicine, 36 leadership, 37 and clinical education 38 have helped to build skills and influence career decisions including pursuit of leadership positions. Compared with earlier stages of medical training, residents possess practical clinical experience to inform use and understanding of informatics tools and often serve as "frontline" users for many clinical workflows.…”