In Matters of Diversity, Does Diversity Matter?
When you think of diversity, what comes to mind? Race? Gender? Culture? Religion? Sexual orientation? Maybe you thought of one or two of these things that distinguish us from one another, but truthfully, all of these factors make us all unique in our own ways. Now think of diversity in veterinary medicine. Looking around in various clinics, veterinary colleges and conferences, you may meet a lot of different people from all walks of life than make important contributions to veterinary medicine. But is veterinary medicine truly diverse?
Though there is no information available about culture, religion and sexual orientation, statistics on gender and race are available. Despite being underrepresented for decades, women have rebounded to now make up 80% of all veterinary students, according to research by Irvine and Vermilia in 2010. While non-Caucasian Americans make up 26% of the US population, they only make up about 12% of veterinary students. As we look inside the numbers, we see that Latino Americans and Asian Americans only compose about 4% each. African Americans only compose of 2.4%. An alarming statistic is that out of 10,717 students at the 28 Colleges of Veterinary Medicine, only 51 are African American males.
I list these statistics because many are not aware of the diversity challenges in veterinary medicine. I’m sure if I polled 100 veterinarians or veterinary students and asked if diversity was important in veterinary medicine, I would guess that 100 would say yes. But if I asked that same group WHY diversity important, the answers may not come as easy. But diversity is important to veterinary medicine. According to a JAVMA special issue on diversity appearing this month, “Embracing diversity is vital if the veterinary profession is going to continue to fulfill its mission of serving all of society and all animals to the best advantage. From improving communication with clients to providing a better understanding of cultural attitudes and practices that affect animal care to recognizing how differences in gender attitudes affect the work environment, diversity touches every aspect of the profession.
The AVMA has taken steps to make veterinary medicine diverse such as including specific diversity tasks in its strategic plan and hosting the Veterinary Diversity Symposium at its annual symposium. Some of you may not be aware of the Iverson Bell Symposium, sponsored by the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges. This conference, held every two years, hosts speakers and panels that examine diversity in veterinary medicine. Specific colleges such as Purdue University, North Carolina State and Tuskegee University host outreach programs geared toward recruitment of underrepresented groups of students. These are extremely important steps toward promoting diversity in our profession but there is still work to be done.
Some of you may feel that diversity isn’t a big problem because you think that we only serve animals or that the client base that you will serve isn’t diverse. We know that veterinarians are held in high regard by the general public. But can we truly say we are a noble profession if we are not representative of the same general public that own the animals we are to serve? The Bureau of the Census reports that the US population grew by 2.8 million from 2004 to 2005, 1.3 million of which were Americans of Hispanic origin. They also predict that by 2050, 25 % of the population will be people of Hispanic origin. So if your communities or client base haven’t changed yet, it will be very soon. As the face of our nation changes, so should the face of our profession. I challenge us all to encourage and promote diversity in veterinary medicine.
-Van Brass