Five years into MSU’s growth as a nonprofit, the Board of Directors realized that informally consulting with members to maintain cultural sensitivity was no longer sufficient. In this world of racial and cultural strife, the Board of Directors and the newly formed Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Standing Committee want MSU to be proactive and ensure MSU’s equity and inclusivity is second to none.
The committee’s Statement of Intent is as follows:
MSU’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee’s goal is to amplify more wide-ranging voices, while increasing MSU’s ability to serve the needs of our diverse, multicultural, and multi-abled myositis community!
The committee will advise the Board on matters such as diversity education and increasing participation in governance by people of all backgrounds, amplify the voices of our minority members and encourage their participation in the MyositisLIFE website, cultivate relationships with other organizations dedicated to the health disparities in minority and at-risk groups, encourage our members to learn more from each other, share more cultural information about all of our members and their backgrounds through cultural celebrations.
All of these activities will help MSU to further fulfill its vision which is to aim to “create a world where patients, caregivers, and providers have better knowledge, support, and understanding of myositis.” This committee will work to build programs and relationships to further MSU’s mission and vision; making our work more inclusive and equitable for all myositis patients and care partners.
An important first step all myositis stakeholders (Board members, volunteers, myositis patient and caregiver members, doctors, researchers, and all other health professionals working in the myositis community) can do is take the Harvard Implicit Bias Inventories, found here.
We stand together with all myositis patients and aim to better understand, and further explore, how the lives of members from different cultures are affected by myositis and what we at MSU can do to form better partnerships to further the cause of our members everywhere. Volunteer opportunities to join the DEI committee are forthcoming in the near future!
Are you interested in joining the MSU DEI Committee?
We are looking for volunteers from all backgrounds. If you would like to volunteer with MSU, please submit your volunteer interest using our volunteer form.
Tags: advocacy board DEI healthcare
