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School of Medicine School of Medicine
  1. School of Medicine
  2. Education
  3. MD & Combined Programs
  4. PRIME
  5. Health Equity
  6. Admissions
  7. Why Health Equity

Why Health Equity Matters

Disparities in Health

Disparities in health may be influenced by many different factors such as:

  • Race
  • Ethnicity
  • Gender
  • Sexual orientation
  • Socio-economic status
  • Geography
  • Incarceration
  • Physical disabilities

Diverse Region

San Diego is a diverse region with a multitude of varied experiences available to students:

  • One of the busiest international land border crossing in the world
  • Spans the U.S./Mexico border from urban to rural areas
  • More refugees resettle in San Diego than any other metropolitan area in Southern California
  • San Diego County is home to more Native American reservations (18) than any other county in the U.S.
  • One-third of households are non-English speaking

UC San Diego School of Medicine (SOM) faculty have a strong tradition of community/university partnerships across these areas.