LEADS is a two-year course intended to provide our students with time in the formal curriculum to immerse themselves in learning, experience and discovery in health equity so that they can develop skills in designing scholarly innovations now and in their future careers. The LEADS health equity curriculum begins with an overview of health equity and the inequities in health that exist due to factors at the personal, social, political, and other structural levels. The course has students consider the role physicians have in recognizing and addressing adverse social determinants of health and the inequities and injustices that contribute to health disparities. The health equity areas of focus in this course include: LGBTQIA Health, Global and Refugee Health, Community Health, Homeless Health, Structural Determinants of Health, Racism in Medicine, and Addiction and Health. All areas of focus have a faculty lead(s) who are content experts and deliver core knowledge in the course and provide mentorship and work with students to develop individualized goals. The curriculum also engages students in experiential opportunities to advance their understanding of inequities and allow students to further witness the challenges marginalized patients face. Students are introduced to BMC faculty, staff, and community leaders who will share solutions and interventions that have led to improved health outcomes. Longitudinally students engage in regular journal clubs highlighting evidence-based interventions related to health equity and are taught scholarly methods to make change including research methods, educational methods, health systems science, community based and advocacy interventions. Finally, students learn ways to disseminate their ideas including through narratives, curricula and other formats. Students are responsible for designing a scholarly project focused on a potential intervention of change in their health equity focus area by the completion of the course. As part of this course, students can join a Longitudinal Research Track as part of the Medical Student Research Program and will be mentored in a 3- to 4-year experience designed for students who want to immerse themselves in research. Students in this track participate in additional required extracurricular hours with their research team outside of the LEADS curriculum.

Note that this information may change at any time. Please visit the MyBU Student Portal for the most up-to-date course information.