Commentary

The UNC School of Medicine Scores 92% on the AAMC DICE Inventory

  • By Do No Harm Staff
  • January 23, 2023
  • University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill

Just how woke is the University of North Carolina School of Medicine? Very woke indeed, as it confirmed to Do No Harm.

Here’s the background. In November 2022, the Association of American Medical Colleges released a report showing that the vast majority of medical schools have embraced identity politics, despite their divisive and even discriminatory nature. The report was based on surveys of specific medical schools, which the AAMC didn’t name.

For the sake of transparency and accountability, Do No Harm submitted freedom of information requests to public medical schools nationwide, including the UNC School of Medicine. We asked for a copy of its survey response, so that North Carolina taxpayers and policymakers could learn the truth about this institution.

Here’s what the UNC School of Medicine (UNCSOM) has self-reported:

  • It has adopted racially discriminatory admissions practices under the guise of “affirmative action.” This means it’s potentially lowering standards in the name of diversity, thereby threatening patient health. Specifically, UNCSOM reported, “The SOM Admissions Committee practices holistic admissions. Additionally, all committee members are required to participate in an in-depth implicit bias workshop.”
  • It has a “dedicated office, staff, or resources” dedicated to DEI. This means there’s a permanent woke bureaucracy pushing ideology on faculty and students. The ODEI is well-entrenched: “The SOM unified [its] DEI programs and initiatives related to all SOM groups (clinical faculty, basic science faculty, clinical students, basic science students, postdocs, residents, and fellow, and staff) under the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in March of 2020. https://www.med.unc.edu/inclusion/.”
  • It offers tenure and promotion to faculty who prove their commitment to extreme identity politics and woke priorities. This is a litmus test that requires faculty to toe the party line instead of teaching medicine at the highest level. “In 2021, the SOM added a DEI statement to the dossier requirements for all faculty.”
  • Its administrators are active within local, regional, and national forums to promote equity, diversity, and inclusion. This means it’s wasting resources that would be better spent on real medical education. Example: “The SOM leadership supports DEI efforts that improve health equity and advocates for these in multiple venues.”

All told, UNCSOM has instituted 92% of the divisive and discriminatory woke policies listed by the AAMC. With this score, AAMC declares UNCSOM is engaging in “substantial Diversity, Inclusion, Culture, and Equity efforts.” And you can bet it is feeling pressure from activists and outside groups to go even further down the radical rabbit hole – doing even more damage to faculty, medical students, and ultimately, the millions of patients they’ll see.

Figure 1. UNC School of Medicine DICE Inventory score.

North Carolina taxpayers help fund the UNCSOM. They, and the policymakers who represent them, should ask why they’re giving so much money to an institution that’s putting divisive and discriminatory ideology at the heart of medical education. More importantly, they should ensure the University of North Carolina School of Medicine stops, and soon.