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Mentorship Diversity
Boosts the 'Health'
in Health Care
By Dr. Natalia Ortiz-Torrent and Dr. Johanna Vidal-Phelan
Editor's note: This article first appeared in the Pennsylvania Medical Society's Pennsylvania Physician magazine.

mbarking on a career in the field of medicine is a highly personal
This shortage of Latino physicians will also affect Pennsylvania,
journey, one that is fraught with many challenges. Without as the Latino population has increased to approximately 896,000
mentors and sponsors, many of us would never have had the (Census data, July 2017), representing the fastest growing ethnic
opportunity to achieve our professional goals. Mentorship plays a group in Pennsylvania and the 13th largest in the nation.6 There is an
critical role in molding and shaping the next generation of physicians. urgency to increase the supply of Latino physicians, with mentorship
Are we doing enough to support the new and under-represented and sponsorship playing a critical role.

minorities that desire to pursue a career in medicine? Developing a
culture that supports and addresses the health care needs of growing
ethnic and racial groups in the U.S. requires a commitment to
diversify the physician workforce.
Under-represented female minorities
face additional challenges when choosing a
career in medicine, including compensation
inequity, gender bias, discrimination and
few mentors in leadership positions. The
junction of gender and race compounds
the effect of biases related to compensation
and career opportunities.
According to the Association of American
Medical Colleges (AAMC), female physicians
make 76 cents for every dollar earned by
male physicians, even after adjusting for age,
years of experience and specialty. Leadership
and mentors are also limited, where fewer
than 20% of medical school deans and
department chairs are women.1

Two PAMED members are committed to addressing this situation,
and the statistics, by increasing the diversity of health care in Pennsylvania. Through sharing their own stories, Dr. Natalia Ortiz-Torrent
and Dr. Johanna Vidal-Phelan hope to inspire
the next generation of medical students,
residents and health-care professionals to
passionately commit to a career in the field
of medicine.

The Resiliency of
a Born Mentor
By Dr. Natalia Ortiz-Torrent

Ortiz-Torrent knew she wanted to be a
doctor since childhood. Her father, born in
1920, was not what many would consider
a "traditional" father. A self-made man, he
expected his daughters to pursue a college
education. Ortiz-Torrent's parents, her first
Dr. Natalia Ortiz-Torrent
mentors, instilled in her the values of perseverance, resilience and determination, while her mother specifically
Unfortunately, the health care workforce doesn't adequately reflect taught her how to save for her education.
the demographic characteristics of the U.S. population. According to
Applying and being accepted to medical school in Puerto Rico
the Journal of Academic Medicine2, the proportion of Latino physicians was initially very challenging and competitive. As part of her journey,
continues to drop, while the Latino population continues to grow, Ortiz-Torrent first decided to pursue a career in chemistry so that she
accounting for 18% of the U.S. population.3 Research shows that could gain both research and employment experience. Her college
there are only 105 Latino physicians per 100,000 Latino patients, mentor, Dr. Rosita Baez, advised her to pursue a research position
compared to 315 white physicians per 100,000 white patients.4 While at the University of Puerto Rico's Cayey campus. Research with
current census data projections indicate 24.6% of the population another mentor, Dr. Juan Estevez, led to several presentations that
will be Latino by 2035,5 the Latino physician shortage has worsened would ultimately culminate in attending and participating in the
over the past 30 years, negatively impacting cultural competency American Chemical Association (ACA) national meeting.
and language-concordant patient care.

22 Philadelphia Medicine : Fall 2020

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Philadelphia Medicine Fall 2020

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