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Pediatric Residency Program - Our Diversity

Dr. Sundaram with Fallah
​Denver and its surrounding communities boast a population covering a large range of ethnic and socioeconomic groups. We are committed to attracting residents to our program of diverse backgrounds, both to best reflect the community we serve, and to enhance the educational experience for all of our residents.

Our program’s Diversity in Pediatrics Committee (DIPC) works to foster diversity within our program and ensure our program graduates are prepared to meet the needs of a diverse patient population. DIPC is co-chaired by residents, with a faculty Director and Advisor, and the active members include pediatric residents, chief residents, pediatric fellows, Graduate Medical Education staff, and pediatric faculty members. To learn more about DIPC and its efforts, see below.

DIPC also manages an externship stipend, funded by the Department of Pediatrics, for visiting fourth-year medical students from all backgrounds who have a track record of interest in caring for the medically underserved. For more information about this scholarship opportunity, please visit our Externship Stipend web page.

For more information about diversity and the Department of Pediatrics, please visit our Diversity website.

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Resident Diversity in Pediatrics Committee

The Resident Diversity in Pediatrics Committee (DIPC), founded by pediatric residents, meets regularly to work on fostering diversity within our program and to help ensure our program graduates are prepared to meet the needs of a diverse patient population.
 
Although our committee is a primarily resident-directed endeavor, the support of the following individuals and groups is essential to the survival and success of this committee:
 
  • Dr. Stephen Daniels, Chairman of Pediatrics
  • Dr. Adam Rosenberg, Residency Program Director
  • The entire Department of Pediatric Graduate Medical Education
  • Dr. Liz Thilo, DIPC Advisor
  • Dr. Sophia Meharena, DIPC Director
  • Children's Hospital Colorado Administrators
  • The University of Colorado School of Medicine

 
We are grateful to be part of a program so dedicated to diversity.
 


 
 

EXTERNSHIP STIPEND: In order to lessen the burden of cost of a visiting rotation, the Department of Pediatrics funds an externship stipend geared towards fourth-year medical students interested in pediatrics and serving medically underserved populations. For more information, please visit our Externship Stipend web page. 

RecruitmentRECRUITMENT: In order to help promote the program, we are involved various recruiting and outreach efforts, including attending national medical student conferences and working with our local Student National Medical Association (SNMA) chapter. In addition, DIPC hosts Diversity Dinners (please see the Events tab on this page) during the residency interview season. These events are a time for interviewees interested in the objectives of the committee, or with questions about diversity in Denver or at Children’s Hospital Colorado, to meet with committee members and faculty in a causal setting. For more details about the upcoming Diversity Dinners, please see the Events tab on this page.  

OUTREACH: The committee members have been involved in various outreach activities, including local health fairs and suturing workshops for students from elementary school through college.

GROWTH: Our committee is continually growing! Resident-driven, the goals and objectives are fluid and enhanced by every committee member’s input. While continuing to advance the projects underway, we are full of ideas and hope to begin expanding the objectives to include more in-depth community outreach, research, or whatever the residents want to do!
 
Diversity Dinner
RECRUITMENT DIVERSITY DINNERS
Each recruiting season, the Diversity Committee hosts a few dinners for interviewees interested in the committee and its mission. These dinners are open to any pediatrics residency program interviewee and are held after the regularly scheduled program social event. Attendance at these dinners is optional and does not in any way impact your application to the residency program or your rank status. RSVP is requested but not required. To RSVP, or if you have any questions about the committee or the dinners, please see the Contact Us tab on this page.
 
Dinners are on select Thursdays during the recruitment season and are generally at 8:15 pm, after the program social event. The location is within walking distance of the program social, and residents at the dinner will help coordinate transportation back to your hotels. For more details, including dates and locations for the dinners during the recruiting season, please see the Contact Us tab on this page. 

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The Diversity in Pediatrics Committee is a resident-run committee with administrative support based in the Department of Pediatrics and the Children’s Hospital Colorado Graduate Medical Education office.
 
For more information about the Pediatric Residency Diversity Committee or the Externship Stipend, please feel free to contact us via email at DIPC@childrenscolorado.org, or contact:

Sophia G. Meharena, DO
Director, Diversity in Pediatrics Committee
Liaison for Diversity in Pediatric Resident Recruitment and Education
Sophia.Meharena@childrenscolorado.org
720-777-5790
 
DIPC Mailing address:
Children’s Hospital Colorado
13123 E. 16th Avenue, B-158
Aurora, CO  80045
Attn: Eric Sommers
720-777-6884