As it currently stands, there are many barriers preventing racial minority students from being accepted into medical school at the same rates as their White peers. This has broad reaching effects that shape how medicine is practiced. In order to help mitigate this issue, different schools and medical groups have begun to develop programs designed to assist students in being accepted into medical school. In this literature review, I further examine these programs by selecting 12 articles to further examine the programs they mentioned. From this examination, trends in the types of programs and the target demographics emerged. The types of programs included academic enrichment, research and lab exposure, mentorship, admissions preparation, counseling, postbaccalaureate or master’s programs, pre-entrance, and recruitment programs. Target demographics varied in age which affected the format of the program. Analyzing different programs revealed the ways in which minority students are currently being assisted and that there is no current standardized measure of the effectiveness of these programs. It will be important to determine effectiveness in order to eliminate these disparities which will be crucial in reducing health disparities nationally.
This project is an investigation of the gene by environment (GxE) interactions’ effect on substance use outcomes among refugee communities. Substance use disorders (SUDs) are a major public health concern, affecting individuals and communities worldwide. The etiology of SUDs is complex, involving a combination of genetic, environmental, and social factors. In recent years, there has been growing interest in the role of gene by environment interactions in the development of SUDs, particularly in vulnerable populations such as refugees. Refugee populations are exposed to a range of environmental stressors that may interact with genetic factors to increase their risk of SUDs. However, a number of studies describe a “refugee paradox,” where despite having been exposed to risk factors that can lead to SUDs, they are less likely to develop SUDs. Understanding these gene by environment interactions in refugee communities is crucial for not only understanding this phenomenon, but developing effective prevention and treatment strategies for this population. This thesis aims to investigate the gene by environment interactions underlying substance use in refugee communities and to analyze different methods for gene by environment analyses, ultimately determining which method is best suited for this population.
The survey covered four main areas: educational background, immigration status, the employing orchestra or organization’s budget, and conductors’ challenges and perceptions. Considering the sensitivity of the topic and following best practices of human subjects’ research, participant identities were coded with letters.
Participants expressed more certainty about the issues and challenges concerning how they were perceived as females than as immigrants. There was insufficient data to correlate the budget of the orchestra with the willingness of the institution to be a visa sponsor.
This study’s findings suggest that there are areas that should be further explored such as: the effect a conductor’s nationality has on their career and reception in the United States; how potential motherhood affects the conductors’ careers; organizations’ willingness and ability to hire immigrants, offer sponsorship, and assist the artist in the transition out of the student visa status; and the perceptions and experiences of being an immigrant conductor in the United States.