Keys to Success: An Interprofessional Black Student Cohort Program Across the UF Health Science Center
In the health professions pipeline, attrition of Black students is a substantial issue. Black college students face several challenges, including a lack of academic integration and institutional support, resource barriers, and few role models. Nationally, Black students enter college at a similar rate to White students but change majors or leave college before receiving a degree (Wilbur et al., 2020). Black students often present high distress, isolation, depression, and anxiety (Soto et al., 2016). These factors, combined with systemic racism and overlapping crises, fail to encourage Black students to complete college and pursue health professions careers. The health professions workforce needs to diversify to address health equity and interprofessional pipeline programs can substantially foster this diversification, while simultaneously preparing students for interprofessional collaboration within health care.
Keys to Success is an interprofessional pipeline program to facilitate the progress of Black undergraduate students at the University of Florida into the health professions. This newly established program provides academic preparation, social support, mentoring, and career exploration. Fundamentally, the program is to create an interprofessional community that encourages academic and personal growth, wellness, and a sense of belonging among Keys students, Black health professions students, and faculty. The Keys research team will investigate what has helped or hindered Black students throughout their educational experience in interprofessional pipeline programs. Progress evaluation will be conducted through monthly progress reports, a midpoint workshop, tutoring and mentoring evaluation, and endpoint mixed methods program evaluation.
Students in the Keys to Success Program: 1) Develop meaningful mentoring relationships that support personal growth and wellness. Students have health professions student mentors. Mentoring also includes conversations with faculty and organic connections. 2) Participate in academic enrichment activities such as tutoring, study skills, and test preparation, including preparation and practice for professional school entrance exams and research opportunities. 3. Develop a sense of belonging and well-being in the University community and our health science center. 4. Participate in career exploration and exposure to health professions through shadowing experiences, faculty panels, clinical rotations, and interprofessional education activities.
As an interprofessional pipeline program, the Keys program provides an example of interprofessional education addressing the need for a more diverse health professions workforce, and one that enters health professions training already exposed to interprofessional collaborative concepts. Promoting the success of Black undergraduate students into health professions careers will help address health equity and social justice issues within our health care system.
