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In This Issue:
Working To Strengthen Diversity at BWH
The second in a series of articles that highlights emerging clinical leaders at BWH.
Minority Career Development
Growing up in Jamaica and attending public school in New York City after immigrating to the United States at the age of 14, O’Neil Britton, MD, never had the experience of a true “mentor” or career guidance until college.
However, early on during his studies at the City College of New York, Britton encountered his first mentors and witnessed the difference one can make in an individual’s life as he found himself applying to medical school for the following year.
“Although I always had an interest in medicine, I never envisioned myself pursing it as a career,” explains Britton. “But with the encouragement, guidance and friendship of my first mentors, I began to see the world differently and the endless possibilities for my future.”
After completing his undergraduate degree, Britton attended the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and later came to BWH as a resident and then full-time staff member.
Now as the associate director for Minority Career Development, Britton is committed to increasing minority representation at BWH and spends a great deal of his time focusing on building and retaining a diverse community of medical students, residents and staff physicians.
Britton explains that his role in diversity recruitment at BWH is “just natural,” and from both professional and personal experience recognizes that “caring for a diverse population requires diverse caregivers.”
Through his role in Minority Career Development, Britton strives to “give the opportunity for those who qualify the chance to be where they want to be by pursuing medicine at one of the leading institutions in the country.”
Along with a group of involved residents, fellows, and physician staff, Britton works to recruit medical students across the country by visiting target areas as well as individual schools, speaking about the wealth of opportunity that exists for minorities in medicine. The group also serves as mentors for residents recruited through this program and strives to promote camaraderie between residents and fellows across the board.
Not only does Britton play a major role in the recruitment of minority students, he also has the opportunity to work with them one-on-one, teaching them about the role and importance of hospitalists at BWH.
“As an inpatient specialist, it’s my job to know and understand the specific needs of inpatients so that we can provide them with the best care and make their stay as comfortable as possible,” said Britton who treats patients with all types of medical conditions, spanning from heart disease to diabetes.
“Combining my medical practice with an active role in diversity recruitment and mentorship allows me to pursue two of my greatest passions,” explains Britton. “There’s also no greater reward than witnessing the success of those students I’ve had a hand in recruiting and training.”
Noting that since the early 1990s, BWH has seen a considerable improvement in diversity recruitment, Britton truly believes there is possibility for significant change and hopes that the Minority Career Development will continue to foster new growth.
“O’Neil has been invaluable in our continual effort to attract and maintain a diverse group of residents,” said George Ruiz, MD, chief medical resident. “Not only is he a great physician, but he’s a physician with an overwhelming passion for promoting diversity and mentoring those with possibility.”