Vital Times 2022 - 88

SPECIAL FEATURES
National Latino/a Physician Day -
Raising Awareness & Urgency Behind
the Lack of Latino/Latina Physicians
in the United States
Cesar Padilla, MD and Michael Galvez, MD
I
n the United States less
than 6% of all physicians
are Latino or Latina, despite
19% of the U.S. population
identifying as Latino. California
has an even higher number
of Latino's, reaching almost
40% of the population, with
future increases projected
to approximate 50% by the
year 2050. Across the United
States., it is expected that 1 in
3 Americans will be of Latino
descent by the year 2050.
There are significant health care barriers, inequalities,
and poorer health outcomes in the Latino/Latina/Latinx/
Hispanic patient population, raising the need for a
physician workforce that is reflective of this population.
The COVID-19 pandemic has worsened existing
inequalities and outcomes, adding urgency to the
mission of improving Latino/a physician representation.
In response to these disparities, a national grassroots
initiative - National Latino/a Physician Day -- aims
to raise awareness regarding the critical shortage of
Latino/a physicians has been undertaken by Latino
and Latina attending physicians, resident physicians,
medical students and premedical students across the
United States. National Latino/a Physician Day celebrates
existing Latino/a U.S. physicians, while also highlighting
the critical shortage of Latino/a physicians in the U.S.
The social media and grassroots campaign to celebrate
NLPD was founded by Michael Galvez, MD, a Pediatric
Hand Surgeon at Valley Children's Hospital, and
Cesar Padilla, MD, an Obstetric Anesthesiologist at
Stanford Hospital and Clinics, who also serves as the
Vice Chair for the CSA's Justice, Equity, Diversity and
Inclusion Committee. The movement gained traction
with the launching of a custom T-shirt campaign that
commemorates the inaugural year of this effort with
proceeds donated to MiMentor - a non-profit aimed
at helping underserved students pursuing medicine.
Antonio Hernandez Conte, MD, MBA, FASA, PresidentElect
of the California Society of Anesthesiologists,
has been critical in launching NLPD towards national
recognition. Dr. Hernandez Conte obtained national
support from the Kaiser Permanente federation via KP
LatinX Association's sponsorship for NLPD. Along with
organizing an in-person event and media coverage in
southern California, we are currently, aware of 11 events,
spanning six states, which have been organized to
celebrate NLPD.
The Need for Latino/a Physician
Anesthesiologists
88 | CSA Vital Times
Vital Times 2022

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