Many healthcare professionals feel inadequately prepared to meet the needs of individuals from the LGBTQ+ community, potentially contributing to healthcare disparities for the community. The National Institutes of Health highlight significant healthcare disparities and unmet research needs for this community, and advocacy groups show concerning data about poor healthcare access, healthcare outcomes, physician attitudes and patient experiences for community members.

The Kaiser Family Foundation noted that the LGBTQ+ community is at extreme risk for health disparities including poorer health and more chronic and disabling medical conditions. LGBTQ+ patients are more likely to report negative clinician experiences and being treated unfairly by a medical professional. This leads to decreased use of the healthcare system for regular checkups, increased emergency room visits, delays in diagnosis and care and higher out-of-pocket costs for patients. We see reduced patient satisfaction, lowered engagement in preventative and curative care and poor mental health outcomes. These disparities continue to worsen for transgender patients.

Expanding LGBTQ+ Healthcare Education

Some medical schools report less than five hours of training dedicated to LGBTQ+ healthcare in their entire curriculum, implying that training is insufficient to address a multifactorial issue. UC Irvine is committed to eliminating healthcare disparities through our mission-based programs.

Supported by a gift from UniHealth Foundation, the School of Medicine established the Leadership Education to Advance Doctoring for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer communities (LEAD-PRIDE) program to change our approach to LGBTQ+ healthcare education and delivery.

Training Future Physician Leaders

Our future physicians take additional training in leadership, communication, research, education, quality improvement, advocacy and health equity. Using the knowledge and skills they learn through our dedicated curriculum, LEAD-PRIDE students enter leadership positions capable of effecting systemic changes.

Ronnie
"Born out of his own experiences as a patient, a desire to give back to his community, our director, Ronnie Rivera, MD, MSEd, developed a robust training program and recruited like-minded faculty such as Co-Director Cristobal Barrios, MD, to bring LEAD-PRIDE to life. As UC Irvine’s fifth mission-based program, LEAD-PRIDE is designed for medical students who wish to become leaders in addressing disparities in LGBTQ+ healthcare. " -— Ronnie Rivera, MD, MSEd, Program Director