Target Audience

Healthcare providers of all specialties may benefit from the information presented.

Goals and Objectives

Discrimination is often experienced among medical students in clinical settings, especially those who belong to ethnic or gender minority groups, and it can occur in the form of “microaggressions”. In this podcast, Ms. Allison Kumnick and Dr. Julia Belkowitz discuss a simulation-based approach to improve medical students’ resilience and communication, as well as educate faculty members on unintentional discriminatory practices. They also detail what led them to develop their project, the findings of which they and their coauthors present in their upcoming Southern Medical Journal article, “Developing Awareness and Allies: Simulating Difficult Conversations about Microaggressions for Faculty and Students”.  At the conclusion of this activity, the attendee should be able to:

1. Define microaggressions and better understand what they are.
2. Improve communication when addressing discrimination and microaggressions. 

Course Information

CME Release Date: March 2, 2022
Valid for credit through:  March 1, 2025
Course type: Enduring Material
Estimated time of completion: 22 minutes

Credits Available

Southern Medical Association is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Southern Medical Association designates this Enduring Activity for a maximum of .25 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

AAPA: AAPA accepts certificates of participation for educational activities certified for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ from organizations accredited by ACCME or a recognized state medical society. 

AANPCP: The American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Program (AANPCP) accepts AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ from organizations accredited by the ACCME.

Healthcare Professionals
For information on applicability and acceptance of continuing education credit for this activity, please consult your professional licensing board.  All healthcare professionals who are not MDs or DOs will receive a certificate of participation.

Instructions for Participation and Credit

This activity is designed to be completed within the time designated; learners should claim only those credits that reflect the time actually spent in the activity. To successfully earn credit, participants must complete the activity online during the valid credit period noted, following these steps:

• Read the goals and objectives, accreditation information, and author disclosures.
• Login in below to study the educational content and references.
• Complete the attestation, post-test (if applicable), and evaluation.

Upon successful completion of these components, your certificate will be processed and emailed from customerservice@sma.org within approximately 1 hour. Credits will be archived for 6 years; at any point within this time period you may login to your account to print a duplicate copy of your certificate.

Disclosure of Relevant Financial Relationships

Southern Medical Association (SMA) requires instructors, planners, managers, and all other individuals who are in a position to control the content of this activity to disclose conflicts of interest (COI) with ineligible entities within the last 24 months of the development of this activity. All identified COIs are thoroughly vetted and mitigated prior to the release of the activity. SMA is committed to providing its learners with high quality activities and related materials that promote improvements or quality in healthcare and not a specific proprietary business interest of a commercial interest.

The following individuals, unless otherwise noted, have no relevant financial relationships to disclose.

Julia Belkowitz, MD, MPH
Dr. Belkowitz received her bachelor’s degree in psychology at the University of Michigan and her medical degree at Jefferson Medical College.  She completed her pediatric internship and residency at Jackson Memorial Hospital, and is currently an Associate Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine (UMMSM).  At UMMSM, Dr. Belkowitz serves as the Assistant Dean for Student Affairs.  Dr. Belkowitz also works to raise awareness about the issue of caregiving youth through mentorship of trainees, advocacy and research. 

Allison Kumnick, BA
Allison Kumnick is a fourth-year medical student at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. She will graduate in May 2022 with her MD and Master of Public Health (MPH) degree. She is pursuing obstetrics and gynecology, and she is passionate about advocating for society's marginalized groups.