Identifying and Filling the Need for a Social Justice Interdisciplinary Elective

Abstract

Racially motivated homicides, fights over land and water rights, and the disproportionate way COVID-19 has affected marginalized communities, has awakened our nation to the prevalence of social inequality and sparked a revolution for social justice. To achieve health equity solutions, professionals across disciplines must collaborate. Current attempts at JABSOM and the University of Hawaiʻi (UH) to promote interdisciplinary education among Hawaiʻi’s future physicians, nurses, social workers, public health workers, and lawyers have been stunted due to conflicting schedules and geographic distance between campuses. Now, with the prevalence of online learning, students may find more opportunities for schedule overlap and geography will no longer be an issue. This course will be an important first step toward integrative and collaborative solutions to improve the health of our communities.