The National Institutes of Health (NIH) are asking for
feedback on creating a framework for the NIH-wide Strategic Plan for Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA). AcademyHealth intends to inform the NIH about the ideas of our membership.
The purpose of the Strategic Plan is to articulate NIH’s vision for embracing, integrating, and strengthening diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) across all NIH activities to achieve the NIH mission. NIH has identified three key areas that they want the new Strategic Plan to cover: Organizational practices to center and prioritize DEIA within the workforce; broad efforts to manage and sustain DEIA through structural and cultural change; and research to promote both workforce and health equity.
AcademyHealth has been engaged in this effort, having recently provided comments to:
More information about what AcademyHealth has learned from our prior work in DEI and our response to the events of 2020, summary of the recommendation of an External Advisory Group on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and our approach to charting a course for higher impact, more equitable health services research can be found in this commentary in
Health Services Research.
To help AcademyHealth develop a response, please any or all of the following questions. Of note, specific and actionable suggestions, especially within the authority that NIH already has, are exceptionally helpful.