The UAB Pediatric Health Equity Scholars spent three days at the end of September traveling throughout the Black Belt and to prominent places pivotal to the Civil Rights Movement to explore the historical context of health disparities and inequities within Alabama.

They visited the Legacy Museum and National Museum for Peace and Justice in Montgomery. They spoke with Dallas County District Judge Vernetta Perkins and Ainka Jackson, Executive Director of the Selma Center for Nonviolence, Truth and Reconciliation, community leader Frank Hardy and middle school students in Selma.

They met State Senator Billy Beasley and Dr. Deanah Maxwell Stafford, UAB School of Medicine alumna, in Tuskegee and also discussed the origins of medical mistrust by learning more about the Tuskegee Syphilis Study with bioethicist, Dr. Stephen Sodeke and the lesser-known contributions Tuskegee University had to the medical field by historian Dr. Dana Chandler. They also met with local health care workers in Camden, in Wilcox County, and learned more about Gee’s Bend. 

The Health Equity Scholars, led by Drs. Madhura Hallman, Morissa Ladinsky and Chrystal Rutledge, are a group of pediatric and combined pediatric residents and subspecialty fellows who are interested in leading advances in health equity for children.

Along with twice yearly immersive experiences, scholars meet throughout the year for didactic and experiential learning (with two weekend long immersive experiences per year) and participate in a quality improvement project to improve child health equity.

This wonderful opportunity to learn from history and each other to overcome social, cultural, and systemic barriers to equitable care has been made possible through generous gifts from The Carlo Family, Dr. Iris D. Fancher and Mrs. Andrea Martin. Thank you so much for supporting the Department of Pediatrics and our trainees!