Enhancing diversity in academic neurology: From agnosia to action

Although recent years have seen a rapid increase in the diversity of patient populations and of society in general, individuals who belong to historically disadvantaged groups continue to struggle to achieve fuller representation and success in academic medicine. This is particularly true in academic neurology, where faculty from racial and ethnic minority groups are grossly under-represented. Raising awareness of this problem in the field is an important first step toward developing coordinated, strategic approaches to enhancing diversity in neurology. Therefore, the aims of this brief article are to underscore the increasing importance of diversity in neurology, point out some of the specific challenges that face diversity efforts in academic neurology, and suggest strategies that leaders in the field could consider in order to enhance the diversity of neurology departments. Ann Neurol 2016;79:705-708.