More Than $2 Million Endowed for Minority Medical Students

College of Medicine combating health disparities by training more minorities

CHARLESTON -- Becoming a physician is never easy, and it's even more difficult for minority medical students when academic challenges are compounded by lower socioeconomic status, few minority mentors, and intense scholarship competition. Minority patients, on the other hand, are often frustrated by the lack of minority physicians and the health disparities that exist for them. More minority students will walk the halls of MUSC and patients will be one step closer to a day with no health disparities with the creation of the Jerry and Jenny Reves Diversity Scholarship Endowment.

The endowment enables the college to continue to recruit the brightest and best minority medical students, thus furthering a change in how the physician work force will look and operate. By supporting and increasing the presence of minorities in medicine, Jerry Reves, M.D., College of Medicine dean and vice president for medical affairs, and his co-associate dean of admissions, Deborah Deas, M.D., are addressing health disparities head-on. The endowment was possible via collaboration between University Medical Associates (UMA) and the College of Medicine's clinical departments, which raised a total of $2,165,000 to support students. It is named for Reves, an MUSC College of Medicine graduate, and his wife, Jenny, a graduate of the MUSC College of Health Professions.

Reves and Deas have been addressing health and student disparity issues for some time. In 2001, minority students accounted for 10 percent of the college's student body. Today that number is about 19 percent. Reves also doubled the number of minority faculty members from 23 to 58 individuals. Minority residents and fellows also increased more than threefold within the past seven years from 16 to 59 members in 2008. The number of female faculty also increased from 270 in 2001 to 361 this year, and the percentage of female medical students has risen from 42 percent to 48 percent during that time. Currently, 214 of 554 residents are female.

About MUSC

Founded in 1824 in Charleston, The Medical University of South Carolina is the oldest medical school in the South. Today, MUSC continues the tradition of excellence in education, research, and patient care. MUSC educates and trains more than 3,000 students and residents, and has nearly 11,000 employees, including 1,500 faculty members. As the largest non-federal employer in Charleston, the university and its affiliates have collective annual budgets in excess of $1.6 billion. MUSC operates a 750-bed medical center, which includes a nationally recognized Children's Hospital and a leading Institute of Psychiatry. For more information on academic information or clinical services, visit www.musc.edu or www.muschealth.com.

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