Welcome to the Department of Surgery's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) website!
We are excited to share our mission, vision, and strategic plan for DEI across our clinical, academic and research areas. I hope you find the information here valuable and informative.
To achieve true excellence, building a strong foundation of diversity is essential to our success. Specifically, recognizing, celebrating, and utilizing our diverse backgrounds, education and experiences will drive our ability to create innovative solutions to some of today’s most challenging health problems.
In addition to fostering a diverse working environment, we must also strive for equity, and an environment that goes beyond inclusivity to truly cultivate a sense of belonging for our teams and the patients we serve.
As we work toward these goals, we pledge to unify our department through advocacy. This means breaking down barriers, changing policies, providing essential resources, and transforming our culture to promote greater inclusivity and belonging. We are also committed to expanding educational efforts that address the barriers we face, such as implicit bias and systemic racism, which can hinder our mission. At the same time, we pledge to celebrate cultural events, moments of significance, and individual achievements that define and enhance the unique identities each of us brings to work every day.
My hope is that through these efforts, our surgical community—comprised of clinicians, learners, staff and patients—will not only survive but thrive, empowered to be their authentic selves as we navigate the complexities of the surgical field.
In solidarity,
Rian Hasson
The Department of Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital seeks to build a diverse team that champions equity, inclusivity, and a sense of belonging. By recognizing and addressing the unique challenges faced by underrepresented individuals in medicine, including our staff, learners and patients, we aim to create an environment where each member feels empowered to be their authentic selves. Our goal is to advocate for persons, policies and practices that support a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment for all and to cultivate a space where everyone can thrive through the process of surgical health care delivery.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (workplace): Three closely linked values that strive to be supportive of people of different races, ethnicities, religions, abilities, genders, and sexual orientations.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (healthcare): Policies or practices that promote the full participation and fair treatment of all people, including populations that are underrepresented or subject to discrimination.
Belonging: The feeling of security and support when there is a sense of acceptance, inclusion and identity for a member of a certain group.
The state in which everyone has a fair and just opportunity to attain their highest level of health (i.e. mobile screenings in remote/rural/low-income areas)
Non-clinical approaches for improving health, preventing disease and reducing health disparities through addressing social, behavioral, environmental, economic and medical determinants of health in a geographically defined population (i.e. community health worker focus groups or learning studios)
Justice in relation to a fair balance in the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individual’s rights are recognized and protected (i.e. policy change)
Rian M. Hasson, MD, MPH Vice Chair, DE&I
Dr. Hasson is a thoracic surgeon and the inaugural vice chair for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DE&I) for the Department of Surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Born and raised in Southern California, she earned her undergraduate degree at UC Berkeley, attended USC Keck School of Medicine, and completed her training at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, The Ohio State University, and Mayo Clinic.
Prior to her arrival at Brigham and Women’s, she served as director of the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center Lung Cancer Screening Program and co-founder and co-director of the Lung Health and Pulmonary Nodule Clinic. Her current clinical focus is on lung and esophageal oncology, and with a passion for health equity rooted in family experiences, her current research focuses on urban disparities in lung cancer screening, particularly within Black/African American/Caribbean populations.
In this role, she strives to emphasize the link between patient access, health outcomes, and diversity, aiming to improve recruitment, retention, and inclusivity at all levels. Beyond medicine, she enjoys family time, international travel, cooking and art.
Ashley N. Morales-Garcia Program Director, DE&I
Ashley Morales-Garcia, MHA, is a dedicated administrative professional committed to enhancing health care through an intersectional approach that emphasizes health equity and professional development. Driven by inclusive policies and collaborative efforts, her objective is to champion initiatives that cultivate a more inclusive, efficient, and fulfilling work environment for all faculty, residents and staff at Brigham Surgery.
Morales-Garcia has been with Brigham Surgery since 2019. Her primary responsibilities include providing support to the vice chairs of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and Faculty Development in the implementation and advancement of high-level initiatives. These programs encompass the Faculty Development Series; Faculty Annual Reviews (F.A.R.); physician and resident wellness and inclusion; recruitment of faculty, learners, and staff; retention of faculty and trainees; and data and research collection.
Morales-Garcia is a graduate of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, where she majored in psychology and pre-medical sciences. She graduated summa cum laude with a master’s degree in health care administration from Boston College Woods College of Advancing Studies.
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