Regardless of where you do your residency, you’ll need someone who has your back. At Sinai Chicago, that person is me — Dr. Gina Walton.

On my journey to becoming a physician — and still today — I’ve often been the only Black person in the room, the only woman in the room, la única que habla español — the only one who speaks Spanish.

This is unfortunately the case for many medical trainees and physicians of color in this country. Yet, people’s lives in our communities literally depend on having more physicians of color treating them. Research shows that when physicians and patients share the same ethnicity, this improves maternal health outcomes during childbirth, management of pain, patient medication adherence, routine health screenings, and many other components of quality healthcare.

Sinai Chicago has looked in the mirror and seen its flaws on diversity — namely having very few Black and Latinx residents and physicians, despite serving a predominantly Black and Latinx community.

Of course, we put out a statement after George Floyd’s murder, just like everyone else. When COVID hit our communities hard, we even held town hall meetings asking to hear the voices of our staff and communities regarding racism and health inequities.

It’s time to make meaningful changes that translate into health equity and improved outcomes for our community.

It’s time to save more lives and give new life!

Our vision is to curate Sinai residency programs to be the model for urban residency programs in underserved communities across the United States.

Our goal is to build a residency program that reflects who we are, especially since people of color are disproportionately affected by healthcare disparities. Plus, people of color have been historically excluded from medical training. Only about 5% of physicians in the U.S. are Black and just under 6% are Hispanic, although these groups make up approximately 40% of the U.S. population.

As a Black woman, and a Spanish-speaking physician who has worked in private practice, large academic hospitals, and for the U.S. government, I can sincerely say that Sinai feels more like home than any other place that I have worked.

Sinai’s top hospital leadership is engaged and supportive of this new commitment to our patients and residents. We will recruit, retain, and promote physicians of color and other physicians who have values and experiences that are relatable to the community we treat and care for each day.