Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Dr. Chehade and her team at the MSCED are dedicated to creating, maintaining, and evolving a culture of anti-racism at the MSCED through the production of practices that encourage diversity, equity, and inclusion among the staff and for patients. The MSCED operates in a democratic structure with a limited hierarchy to ensure skills among staff are identified and utilized to optimize patient care and research.
Dr. Chehade and her team at the MSCED have historically been involved in DEI efforts in the field of EGIDs, especially EoE. She has collaborated with several EoE experts on efforts to determine variability in disease presentation in males vs. females and in patients of various races and ethnicities., including these two studies:
- Moawad FJ, Dellon ES, Achem SR, Ljuldjuraj T, Green DJ, Maydonovitch CL, Brizuela DR, Gupta SK, Chehade M. Effects of Race and Sex on Features of Eosinophilic Esophagitis. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2016: 14; 23-30. PMID 26343181
- Chehade M, Jones SM, Pesek RD, Burks AW, Vickery BP, Wood RA, Leung DYM, Furuta GT, Fleischer DM, Henning AK, Dawson P, Lindblad RW, Sicherer SH, Abonia JP, Sherrill JD, Sampson HA, Rothenberg ME. Phenotypic Characterization of Eosinophilic Esophagitis in a Large Multi-Center Patient Population from the Consortium for Food Allergy Research. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract 2018;6:1534-1544. PMID 30075341
Dr. Chehade and her team are continuing their DEI efforts through several ongoing projects. To name a few, the team is currently collaborating with APFED to assess for any food insecurities as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic on patients with EGIDs. In addition, approaches to dietary therapies for EGIDs including EoE are also being investigated, while taking into consideration cultural diversity in our approach to consumption of a variety of specific foods.
Dr. Chehade also currently serves on the Co-Chair of the CEGIR Diversity Research sub-committee and the Co-Chair of the Rare Diseases Clinical Research Network Diversity sub-committee. In this capacity, she is leading or participating in several projects. Specifically, she is leading a systematic review to determine the true demographic distribution of patients with EGIDs, to determine any bias in reporting of the demographic distribution of EGIDs including EoE. Dr. Chehade is also contributing to a multi-center study which aims to understand current practice patterns related to possible inequalities in EGID care. She is also co-chairing an effort to find how patients with a rare disease such as EGID can get access to safe research-based therapies in the context of well-designed clinical trials, regardless of their race, ethnicity and socioeconomic status.
From an educational perspective, Dr. Chehade has also been a regular mentor for high school students through the Center for Excellence in Youth Education (CEYE), a program established at Mount Sinai in conjunction with the New York City Department of Education, specifically the internship placement program. Dr Chehade provides students with an opportunity to further skills in taking initiative, communication, and understanding of EGIDs.
For more information on Mount Sinai’s efforts to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion, click here.