Factors That Limit Hispanic Representation in Medical Education: A Review of Hispanic Underrepresentation in Medical Education

Abstract

The underrepresentation of Hispanics in medical education poses a looming problem for the United States. The inability to produce a physician population that mirrors their patients leads to inadequate healthcare for individuals of all ethno‐racial backgrounds. By 2045, Hispanics are projected to make up the majority of the population. The U.S. is 30% Hispanic but only 4% of all current medical students are Hispanic. The objectives of this research were to: [1] analyze key academic, socioeconomic, and psychosocial factors that hinder Hispanics in entering medical schools, and [2] highlight the benefits of increasing Hispanic representation within medical education. A library research using electronic databases such as JSTOR, Proquest, and Medline was conducted. Fifty peer‐reviewed articles were selected, analyzed, and evaluated for their relevance. Relevancy was judged based on how well the articles addressed our objectives. The identification of key factors was done by surveying how often frequently these occurred in the literature.Our review identified multiple key factors. In terms of academics, Hispanics were limited by low GPA, MCAT scores, and gateway courses. In terms of socioeconomic factors, Hispanics were limited by household income and the high cost of obtaining a medical education. Lastly, key psychosocial‐related factors identified were a lack of Hispanic mentors, negative stereotype, stigmatization, micro aggression, and limited exposure to real life role models and to health careers. Our review shows that at any point in time, one or more of these factors play a limiting role in Hispanic students gaining admission into a medical school. To counter these hindrances, the following recommendations are in order: [1] create mentoring programs supported by medical schools for students in primary, secondary, and undergraduate levels; [2] devote resources to socially and economically disadvantaged areas by running summer internship programs, [3] create pipeline programs that are focused on URMs, and [4] encourage institutional change within medical education itself by seamlessly integrating cultural competency aspects into programs, curricula, courses, student orientation programs, and faculty training.Support or Funding InformationThis research was funded by the Texas A&M International University College of Arts and Sciences and ACT On IDEAS.