The Department of Medicine has created a new position to lead our efforts to promote diversity and professionalism throughout our clinical, academic and research enterprises. I am pleased to announce that P. Preston Reynolds, MD, PhD, a professor of medicine in the Division of General, Geriatric, Palliative and Hospital Medicine, has agreed to take on this new role as DOM’s Associate Chair for Professionalism and Diversity.
Dr. Preston Reynolds
Preston Reynolds has been at the national forefront of the medical professionalism movement in this country since its founding in the early 1990s, and has led local and national efforts to integrate professionalism into undergraduate and graduate medical education, as well as into faculty development programs, for over 25 years. She was awarded a Mastership by the American College of Physicians in 2014, in part because of her national leadership on professionalism as well as her decades of work to address health disparities and promote diversity and inclusion in the health professions. Her work in diversity has also earned her national recognition, as well as respect within the UVA community, where she has served as associate director of the Center for Health Disparities, as a member of SOM’s Diversity Consortium, on the MLK Day planning committee, and on the local advisory board for the President’s Commission on Slavery and the University. Within DOM, she has spearheaded, for more than 10 years, the residency curriculum on ethics, professionalism and (more recently) health disparities.
In the associate chair role, Dr. Reynolds will promote our efforts at building a diverse community in the department, developing cultural competency, fostering inclusiveness and developing stronger ties with the Charlottesville community and region. We strive to foster the highest level of respect for all members of our community and make it inclusive of all opinions, as well as to develop and uphold the highest standards of professionalism.
Please welcome Dr. Reynolds in this vital role. I look forward to sharing with you some of our joint endeavors in the coming months.
Mitch
Filed Under: Message from the Chair