The Yale Solomon Carter Fuller Association, named in honor of the nation’s first black psychiatrist, aims to build a sense of community among African-American members of Yale’s Department of Psychiatry.
“I applied to Yale’s psychiatry residency because it was one of the most diverse programs,” said Marilise Hyacinth, MD, PhD, a third-year resident and organizer of the group. “As we get further into our careers, groups like this become increasingly important, not only to support each other but also to create more opportunities for professional mentorship.”
According to a recent census by the American Psychiatric Association, 6.6% of the nation’s psychiatry residents identify as black or African-American. At Yale, the percentage of psychiatry residents who are African-American or of African descent is more than double the national average.
The association hosts group events and links residents with black psychiatrists practicing at Yale and in the New Haven area. While mentorship is a keystone of Yale’s psychiatry residency, Hyacinth notes that getting to work alongside a more senior black physician depends on being assigned to a particular rotation or training site.
Attendees at the group’s first event discussed a 1979 paper co-authored by Ezra Griffith, MD, an emeritus professor in psychiatry and the department’s deputy chair for diversity and organizational ethics. The article, “On the Professional Socialization of Black Residents in Psychiatry,” examines the unique experiences of black residents, and underscores the importance of black professional mentors and diverse clinical experiences. In December the group toured an exhibit at the Yale Center for British Art entitled, Figures of Empire: Slavery and Portraiture in Eighteenth-Century Atlantic Britain. Planned sessions will focus on the business of private practice, the experience of African-Americans in academia, and mass incarceration.
Hyacinth also hopes that making residents of color more visible during the recruitment cycle will help diverse applicants realize that Yale is a good fit for them. This year she and other resident leaders reached out to underrepresented minority applicants, connected applicants with current trainees who have similar interests, and coordinated second look visits. “We’ve had great feedback from the applicants, and we will look for even more ways to have a positive impact on the department’s recruitment efforts,” she said.
On the clinical side, many minority communities express a bias against psychiatry and mental health care. A barrier to seeking treatment, in some cases, is the concern that physicians do not mirror the cultural and racial backgrounds of the communities they serve. Ultimately, Hyacinth hopes the Yale Solomon Carter Fuller Association can confront stigma head-on by engaging the community directly and by encouraging more African-American and other underrepresented minority medical students to consider psychiatry as a career.
For more information about the Yale Solomon Carter Fuller Society and its upcoming events, email Marilise Hyacinth at marilise.hyacinth@yale.edu.