Drawing upon interdisciplinary medical-social sciences partnerships to address racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare

The determinants of health and well-being are complex, and social environmental factors play a pivotal role. Interdisciplinary approaches offer opportunities to address health concerns from a broader epistemological stance, one that provides a more holistic view for understanding this social phenomenon and for effective practice. This article describes a project that relied on interdisciplinary partnerships to address racial and ethnic disparities in healthcare in small cities in Northeast U.S.A. It drew upon two inter-related interdisciplinary partnerships: (1) between faculty and students from a local university and community colleges and (2) between academic institutions and local community stakeholders. Activities encouraged the development of a health related workforce from within local racial and ethnic communities, and helped future and existing health providers develop a deeper sensitivity and understanding of the influence of culture and social justice on effective healthcare. Successes and lessons learned from building and sustaining the interdisciplinary team and the development and implementation of selected project activities, including preliminary information on a research study, are offered.